The NDSU Ballroom Dance Club participated in the all-amateur Star of the North ballroom competition in Minneapolis March 2-3. Hundreds of college students from Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois attended.

Don Miller, who co-coaches the team with his wife, Joan, said the highlight was the College Team Match. For the match, each team selects its top three couples to dance swing, foxtrot and rumba. NDSU’s team of Shane Gores and Megan Meyer, Charles Forward and Rachel Wotzka, and Quang Phan and Sarah Schock finished in the top six out of 20 teams. Northwestern University from Chicago won the match.

Miller, who is also head of the pharmacy practice department, said several NDSU students recorded excellent results in the individual couples events. The results are as follows:

• Newcomer Waltz (41 couples) Ethan Rodgers/Kate Talley – second Charles Forward/Katie Odland – third Cody Bakken/Rachel Wotzka – semi-final

• Newcomer Foxtrot (40 couples) Bakken/Wotzka – fourth Rodgers/Talley – sixth Forward/Odland – semi-final

• Newcomer Tango (41 couples) Bakken/Wotzka – sixth
Forward/Odland, Rodgers/Talley – semi-final

• Newcomer Rumba (40 couples) Rodgers/Talley – semi-final

• Newcomer Swing (36 couples) Forward/Odland – fifth

• Bronze Waltz (72 couples) Gores/Meyer – fifth
Nathan Szurek/Sarah Schock and Rodgers/Talley – semi-final

• Bronze Foxtrot (72 couples) Rodgers/Talley – fourth
Gores/Meyer and Szurek/Schock – semi-final

• Bronze Tango (72 couples) Gores/Meyer – sixth

• Bronze Swing (72 couples) Szurek/Schock – sixth

• Advanced Waltz/Foxtrot/Tango combined (47 couples) Gores/Meyer – semi-final

• Advanced Cha-cha/Rumba/Swing combined (48 couples) Gores/Meyer – semi-final

The Ballroom Dance Club was recognized as an official NDSU student organization in January 2011. For more information on the club, contact Miller at donald.miller@ndsu.edu.

NDSU is recognized as one of the nation's top 108 public and private universities by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education.