Soloists shine in 22 years of Miss Dance Team Minnesota competition

APPLE VALLEY, Minn. — Over the weekend, the Eastview High School gym transformed into a stage for hundreds of high school dancers to compete for the title of Miss Dance Team Minnesota.

One of those dancers competing was Haley Ritter, a senior at Maple Grove High School. She gave it her all one last time after having competed on this gym floor every year since she was in eighth grade.

"I just want to show how much I've improved as a dancer, and I feel like over the years I've gained so much confidence from this competition," said Ritter.

Growth is one gift from this competition, but recognition is another. Wayzata High School tenth grader, Brooklyn Alstead, won first place in her age division for the second time and says winning makes a big impact.

"My name gets out there more and people start to recognize me and that's a big thing," said Alstead.

Jenny Raiche is the director of the Miss Dance Team Minnesota competition, which started back in 2002 to give high school dancers a chance to shine as soloists, not just as a team member.

"In other sports, you have Mr. Hockey or Miss Basketball," said Raiche, "So we wanted to create a platform for dancers in Minnesota to represent their high school teams as individuals."

When Raiche held her first Miss Dance Team Minnesota competition there were only 40 dancers participating. Today, there are 270 dancers from over 50 high schools represented. There is also a much bigger audience of supporters, but more importantly college coaches.

"Minnesota is a hotbed of talent when it comes to dance, and so coaches from all over the country are looking. Are these the top kids in Minnesota? Because if they're placing well in this competition, it's probably a kid they're going to look at for their team," said Raiche.

Last year's Miss Dance Team is Emma Le from Burnsville. She is proof of the greater prize that comes from this competition.

"The title is really nice. I carry it with pride," said Le.

While Le's Burnsville dance team didn't make it to the state tournament her senior year, this competition gave her another chance to shine. Then, she was recruited to the highly-decorated University of Minnesota dance team, where she is currently in her rookie season.

"It doesn't matter what school you come from, where you come from, the wealth of your family. You just have to work hard, put your full passion into it, and you can get where you want to be," said Le.

The top dancers from this competition will also get to compete as "Team Minnesota" on the national level this spring.