NDSU’s newly formed Ballroom Dance Club attended its first dance competition, Star of the North, on Feb. 26 in Minneapolis. The team finished seventh out of nine teams in the official collegiate team match, ahead of Carleton College and University of Minnesota-Rochester. The competition included several experienced teams, including teams from University of Minnesota and University of Wisconsin.

Donald Miller, head of the pharmacy practice department, co-coaches the team with his wife, Joan. He said the team match was especially exciting because of the fans. “NDSU had the most vocal core of cheering fans, with at least 40 family and friends yelling and waving Bison pom-poms,” Miller said. He said the students could really sense the support. “One of the students said, ‘I felt like I was a Bison football player out there with all the cheering.’”

Team members also competed in events for individual couples. Shane Gores and Kelsey Forward placed second in newcomer foxtrot and fourth in newcomer waltz, each in a field of almost 30 couples. Quang Phan and Sammie Nguyen won first place out of 26 couples in newcomer swing. Other team members were Djorde Petrovic, Carly Trowbridge and Megan Meyer.

The Ballroom Dance Club was recognized as an official NDSU student organization on Jan. 28 and has nine members. They plan to attend the Star of the North competition annually and other appropriate events during the year. On Feb. 5, they also performed at NDSU’s Valentine Ball.