UCSD Dancesport had an extremely strong showing at the 2024 Vegas Scarlett Showcase hosted by the University of Las Vegas. In the third competition of the year, UCSD dancers came out strong in all four syllabus styles as well as Nightclub, as well as introducing many new dancers to the floor. 

Waking up early for Syllabus American Smooth, UCSD Dancesport swept the competition in Newcomer and Bronze and placed extremely well in Silver. Couple Chloe Care and Ebone Brower placed first in Newcomer Smooth Waltz and Tango, while couple Cole Spencer and Julia Svajda placed first in Newcomer Smooth Viennese Waltz. Couple Mars Bau and Karsten West placed first in Bronze Smooth Waltz Foxtrot as well as Tango, while couple Cole Spencer and Cadie Sparks placed fifth in Bronze Smooth Waltz Foxtrot, Tango, and Viennese Waltz. In the silver category, couple Alexander Tahan and Persephone Ballatore placed fourth in all dances, while couple Mars Bau and Karsten West finaled in Silver Smooth Waltz Foxtrot. 

In the second style, Syllabus International Standard, the Vegas Scarlett Showcase demonstrated its talent, bringing out the most number of competitors in a competition this year. Still, UCSD dancers finaled in many categories, demonstrating the school’s abilities. In Newcomer, couple Cole Spencer and Julia Svajda placed fourth in Newcomer Standard Viennese Waltz. Couple Mars Bau and Karsten West placed fifth in Bronze Standard Waltz Quickstep as well as Tango, while couple Cole Spencer and Cadie Sparks placed in Bronze Viennese Waltz. For silver, couple Alexander Tahan and Persephone Ballatore placed fifth in Silver Standard Foxtrot Tango, and in gold, couple Alexander Tahan and Marina Kenat placed sixth in WTFQ.

After a quick lunch break, a few UCSD couples quickly head back to the dance floor to compete in Syllabus American Rhythm. Couple Cadie Sparks and Hanna Wei placed sixth in Bronze Rhythm Swing and couple Brandon Torres and Valeria Corona placed fifth in Bronze Rhythm Mambo.

In the last Syllabus style of the night, Syllabus International Latin, UCSD couples were known across the board. In Newcomer, couple Chloe Care and Ebone Brower placed fifth in Newcomer Latin Samba and third in Jive. Couple Cole Spencer and Julia Svajda placed fifth in Newcomer Latin ChaCha and fifth in Rumba, while couple Paul Cretegny and Sage Beutler placed sixth in Newcomer Latin Rumba as well. In Bronze, couple Brandon Torres and Valeria Corona placed second in Bronze Latin Samba, third in ChaCha Rumba and Paso Doble, and fourth in Jive. Couple Mars Bau and Karsten West placed fourth in Bronze Latin ChaCha Rumba, and fifth in Jive. In Silver, couple Brandon Torres and Valeria Corona placed fifth in Silver Latin Samba Jive, seventh in ChaCha Rumba, and sixth in Paso Doble. Couple Alexander Tahan and Persephone Ballatore placed eighth in Silver Latin ChaCha Rumba while couple Mars Bau and Karsten West placed Seventh in Silver Latin Samba Jive and fifth in Paso Doble. In Gold, couple David Mazzotti and Catalina Larsen placed third in CSRJ and second in Paso Doble. 

In Nightclub, which was scattered throughout the Open events, UCSD Dancesport showed off their greatest moves (and props!). Couple Rodrigo Tortoledo and Julia Svajda placed second in Beginner Bachata, first in Merengue, and third in Salsa. Couple Chloe Care and Karsten West placed third in Beginner Bachata, fourth in Merengue, and fourth in Salsa. Couple Cadie Sparks and Sage Beutler placed fourth in Beginner Bachata, and second in Salsa. Finally, for Beginners, couple Cadie Sparks and Hanna Wei placed third in Beginner Merengue and sixth in West Coast Swing. In Advanced, couple Brandon Torres and Valeria Corona destroyed the competition, placing first in Bachata, Merengue, and Salsa. 

For their first time performing Open International Latin, couple David Mazzotti and Catalina Larsen left everyone star-struck, placing third in Novice Latin CSR with newly debuted routines. It was an excellent way to end a long competition and a testament to UCSD Dancesport’s talent and hard work.