Jan. 20, 2008
Cheer Semifinal Gallery
Orlando, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - The UCF cheerleaders and KnightMoves performed at the 2008 College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships on Saturday in the semifinal round of competition, with both squads advancing to the final rounds of the event today.
"We nailed our routine last night," head coach Linda Good said. "The cheerleaders looked very strong and are confident that they can be among the top teams tonight with another solid performance."
Tonight's finale will feature the cheerleading team vying to defend its 2007 National Title at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex in the Division IA Cheer Finals at 6:50 p.m.
UCF is seeded second in the competition behind 2006 National Champion Kentucky. The UCF cheerleaders won the national championship in 2007 and 2003 and were the runner-up in 2002. The team has finished in the top 10 at the national competition 12 of the last 14 years.
The cheerleading squad received an automatic bid into the finals as a result of a 90-second video entry of required skills, which has no weight in the outcome of the finals. The Knights received the highest at-large score. The team submitted a second video showing crowd response to the cheerleaders at various sporting events that counts for 15 percent of the team's final score. UCF was one of 11 teams to receive a perfect score on the crowd tape.
KnightMoves performed its way into the Division IA Hip Hop finals Sunday at 1:55 p.m., and after performing in the Jazz semifinals today, are ranked sixth going into the finals tonight between 4-5:15 p.m., behind Tennessee, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Kansas and Cincinnati.
"After a strong performance in the jazz semifinals today the dance team believes there is a great possibility they could move into the top five with another strong performance in the finals," Gooch said. That would be a huge step for our dance program."
For the latest news and information on the Knights, tickets or apparel log on to www.ucfathletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. Also check out UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pics.
National Championship Schedule
Friday, January 18
*MASCOT Nationals - Disney's MGM Studios (Indiana Jones Theater)
Knightro - 8th place
Saturday, January 19
*DANCE Semifinals - Disney's MGM Studios (Indiana Jones Theater)
Hip Hop Division - Move to Finals
Jazz Division - Postponed until Sunday
Sunday, January 20 - Finals at Disney's Wide World of Sports
*DANCE Finals
Hip Hop - 12:45- 2 p.m.
Jazz - 4-5:10 p.m.
*CHEER Finals
Division IA - 5:15-7 p.m.