Every beginning of a new year, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, takes pride in hosting the Universal Dance Association College Nationals. The event is known as the “Super Bowl” for dancers all over the nation, competing in the categories of Jazz, Pom, Hip Hop, and Gameday. With a number of great performances, University of Minnesota was one that stood out in their routine in the Pom category. The Gophers came home with their fourth consecutive win in this division and its perfect finale for Minnesota’s Matthew Greco, the first male dancer on the Minnesota Dance Team.
Starting from his youth, Greco was a fan of the team. As he saw their high performances year after year, he was set on their program and making history.
“I have always admired the University of Minnesota Dance Team, “ said Greco. “I made it my dream to become the first male on the team. I love dance so much, so being able to continue my dance journey in college was truly my ultimate goal.”
Matthew was drawn to U-of-M because they seemed like a family. His countless hours spent with the team, changed him in more ways than just being a teammate.
“My team has inspired me outside of dance because they are genuinely the sweetest, kindest, and most humble humans I could possibly imagine, “ said Greco. “They provide me support when I need it most. They are my best friends in and out of the gym and everyday I wake up and am just so grateful to be a part of this program and family.”
The stakes for this team were high, as Minnesota was competing for their fourth win in the Pom category this year. All of their year-round hard work lead up to this competition to leave it all out on the mat.
“Leading up to Nationals, there are a lot of mixed emotions that I feel!” said Greco. “From anticipation and excitement, to pure love and joy, this season always brings an overwhelming amount of emotions. Most of all, I am just excited to take the stage with my teammates and put out performances that we are so proud of!”
During this year’s competition, Greco had a fell during a front tuck in his routine that was brought to the attention of many viewers. Their team still finished strong in their routine and took home the national title with their astonishing routine.
“During finals, when that moment happened, the main thing that went through my head was to keep going and finish stronger than I started,” said Greco. “Obviously things happen during performances and it is impossible to have a perfect performance, however all I could do in that moment was recover quickly and get straight back to doing my job!”
After their competition on the mat, Greco was confident in such a high stake moment.
“I did not have any doubts about our performance that day!” Greco said. “Our coach always says, ‘This performance will be exactly what it needs to be,’ and I always put a lot of trust into that statement. It is hard to tell yourself you are going to have a perfect performance because there is always a possibility that does happen and train yourself to recover and keep going no matter what!”
Matthew’s final performance left him with no words as he spent his final moments on the floor, competing with his team.
“There aren’t many words to describe the past four years on this team,” said Greco. “These have been the best years of my life and I wouldn’t change a single thing. This team is everything I could have ever dreamed of and I am so grateful that I was chosen to be a part of it.”
