Feb 22, 2022 2 min read

The Peters Township High School Dance Team recently traveled to Orlando, Fla., to compete in the Universal Dance Association’s National Dance Team Championship.

Because of outstanding performances during UDA summer camp, the team earned a bid to compete in nationals. In Florida, 38 teams competed in Peters Township’s division, Small Varsity Hip Hop.

The first day of the competition, Peters was awarded first place in the preliminary round, earning the team the right to skip the semifinals and go straight to finals, one of just 12 teams to make the cut.

The Final Competition was Feb. 6, and Peters Township took first place. The high school dance team also won national titles in 2013 and 2020.

On this year’s squad, the two senior members, both of whom were on the 2020 team, serve as captains:

• Lexi D’Orazio has been dancing for 15 years and has trained in classical ballet, contemporary and jazz, but her favorite style is hip hop. She was also a gymnast in USA Gymnastics. Lexi has received scholarships to study biology at Clemson, the University of Miami and the University of South Carolina, but hasn’t decided on one yet.
• Grace Marshall has danced and cheered in an all-star setting since she was 4 years old, for 14 years. Grace is attending Ohio University and will be studying human services. She needs to narrow down her specific field, but is interested in helping children in some manner.

Other 2022 team members are juniors Taylor Aeillo, Gabi Casilli, Madi Hensler and Delaney Gaydos; sophomores Anna Radnor, Gabbi Englesberg, Maria Antonio and Cailee Morgan; and freshmen Maddie Zagorski, Emma Bell and Eva Cibrone

The team is coached by Dominique Schuster and Barb Deliere.