Conference tournaments are about basketball but also so much more: the fans, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The CAA Tournament is taking place in Washington, DC this weekend and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD is all over it and covering all of the angles so you can look forward to a cascade of coverage in the days ahead. Jon Teitel continues our coverage by chatting with Elon dancer Brielle Ricciardi about her favorite moment this season and her team’s great run this week.
You grew up in New Jersey: what made you choose Elon? I wanted to be down South, I liked the size of the school, and they had a dance team. It was beautiful when I visited so I knew very quickly that I wanted to come here.
You are majoring in marketing: what would you like to do after graduation? I want to get a job doing marketing in either the sports or health/wellness industry: perhaps a company like CAA, Under Armour, or lululemon.
What was the atmosphere like on campus last week now that the postseason has arrived? Everyone is really excited…for the CAA women’s tournament that is taking place on campus this week.
How did you 1st get into dancing, and what is the best part of being on the dance team? I have been dancing since I was 3 years old both recreationally and competitively. I love being on this team because the girls are so close to each other. I can do what I love to do without having to major in dance and I enjoy cheering on our sports teams.
Will we see your group doing anything extra-special for the CAA Tournament this weekend? We have a halftime performance jazz dance which will be fun and we will also be doing sidelines/chants.
What do you think the role of a college dancer is today, and how has it changed over time? We are supposed to cheer on the team but we do a lot more than that. We compete at nationals, which is just for us, but we work really hard to be a D-1 sports team even though it is an art form.
How does your school decide who gets to go to DC, and what does it mean to you to see your group doing their thing in front of a national TV audience? Our school said that we can have 12 people on the floor as dancers and our coach decided who she wanted to bring based on performance/strength. My parents sent me photos that they took of me on TV, which has been fun.
What has been your favorite moment so far this season: playing at Michigan/UNC, beating Northeastern at home, Senior Night, other? Saturday night’s win over JMU was awesome. I loved seeing the comeback and dancing/cheering the whole time. The crowd was really into it!
The Phoenix started 6-17 before winning 5 of their next 6 in February: do you bring the same energy every single night or is it much easier to get up for a game when your team is on a winning streak? It is definitely nice when the team wins. We bring the same energy no matter what but morale is much higher when they win.
How exciting was the end of Saturday night’s win over JMU? I was nervous because we did not start out strong but then we were neck-and-neck for most of the 2nd half. When Hunter McIntosh fouled out it was scary because he is 1 of our best players but it was awesome to finish on a high note!