Before Miami played Indiana for the national title at Hard Rock Stadium on Jan. 19, the University of Miami Sunsations dance team and UCheer squad were fighting for their own titles at the UDA and Universal Cheer Association National Championships in Orlando from Jan. 16 to 18.
While Hurricanes fans were buying tickets and planning gameday outfits for the College Football Playoff National Championship, the two University of Miami teams were quietly preparing for national stages of their own.
For the Sunsations and UCheer, the journey was months in the making.
In Orlando, the Sunsations dance team made history as they advanced to the D1A Jazz semifinals for the first time and became the first private school to advance that far in the competition.
“Some of us got to campus right after the Cotton Bowl,” said Sunsations dancer Mia Diffley. “Ever since then we’ve been practicing usually from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. with a break somewhere in the mix.”
Their journey unfolded alongside a historic run by Miami football — one that would culminate in a national championship appearance at Hard Rock Stadium.
Diffley said. “The fact that the Miami community gets to have it at home, it makes it so much more special.”
This national championship marks the first only national title to be played at a teams home stadium. The connection to Miami goes even further than the location, with Indiana’s starting quarterback Fernando Mendoza, being a Miami native and long time fan of the Hurricanes. That unique connection made this game even more high stakes.
The Sunsations’ preparation extended far beyond rehearsals, according to head coach Jonni Rodgers.
“Over the past four months, this team has committed to a level of preparation that goes far beyond the floor,” Rodgers said. “We’ve balanced every men’s and women’s basketball game, eight football home games, and three playoff runs all while continuing to train for our own gameday: UDA Nationals.”
For cheer the national championship run has been similar. “We’ve been preparing for the national championship and for our own national championship since we started our playoff run,” said UCheer member Sophia Mazza. “We actually found out that football had made it into the playoffs while we were at practice.”
The Sunsations, determined to perfect their routines and make a historic run, stayed on campus while most students left for winter break.
“While others are still on break, we’re returning to campus two and a half weeks early, choosing to sacrifice time away so we can be fully ready to take the UDA stage,” Rodgers said.
This season, the team once again competed in both jazz and hip hop. This time, though, they had a new creative direction.
Rodgers gave credit to the fresh talent that is behind the choreography, “This year we intentionally stepped outside the box with our choreography and overall approach. “Our jazz routine was choreographed by Marley Blanchard of The Ohio State University, and focuses on storytelling while remaining grounded in true, authentic jazz technique.”
With both styles, the Sunsations hope to bring unique flavor to the competition.
“Our hip hop routine, choreographed by Jawkeen Howard, takes a slightly different approach by bringing things back to the roots,” Rodgers added. “It leans into musicality, groove, and texture.”
The result was historic. The University of Miami Sunsations achieved a milestone performance, finishing 15th in the Division IA Jazz competition and 13th in Division IA Hip Hop, advancing to the semifinals in both events.
“Having two national competitions in the same weekend makes it just honestly the best weekend of my life,” Diffley said.
While the Sunsations competed on the UDA stage, UCheer faced a different challenge — balancing its own national championship with the demands of Miami football’s postseason run.
And that overlap created an unforgiving schedule. Despite the exhaustion, UCheer placed 7th in the Semi Finals, and Mazza emphasized the significance of representing Miami on such a rare stage — especially at home.
For both squads, having a rooted and hustle-based mindset kept them grounded.
“There were only two teams that went to our national championship that got to say that their football team was also competing for a title in the next week,” Mazza said.
As the Hurricanes took the field for a national title, the Sunsations and UCheer stood alongside them — all feeling a mix of tiredness, pride and resilience. Two national competitions, one relentless weekend and a defining moment for Miami’s spirit squads.