Dance Team Announces Roster Additions for 2020-21

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State’s dance team, under the leadership of Melissa McGhee, has added six members to its 2020-21 roster and also bolstered its coaching staff with the retention of Katie Devine as a volunteer assistant coach.

Devine, who was a member of the team from 2015-19, helped the Buckeyes in a coaching capacity last year, consulting primarily on Nationals. As an athlete, she twice was voted as the recipient of the Leadership Award, was a captain her season year and the team’s MVP. She’ll be back for a full season in 2020-21 and joins a staff that includes McGhee and Patrick Carmichael.

Like Devine, Carmichael is also a Buckeye – he was a cheerleader from 1997-2001 and has been a coach with the dance team since 2010. Carmichael was an integral part of helping the team clinch many of their “firsts” over the past ten years, including the program’s first National Championship in 2018. “Pat is absolutely a huge part of the heart and soul of our team. He brings so much passion for the University and has been a fantastic partner to help grow our program over the years. We are very lucky to have him!”

“I’m very excited to add Katie to our staff as the three of us make a great team,” said McGhee. “We all want the same thing, which is to honor the tradition and excellence of Ohio State and invest holistically in our student-athletes to ensure they are successful during their time here and post-college.”

The six newest members of the roster hail from four different states, including two from Ohio. They are:

• Alina Serfain, from Knoxville, Tenn. – She competed on the dance team at Bearden High School and was part of the team that won Large Varsity Game Day and Medium Varsity Pom at the 2019 UDA Nationals.
• Brenna Bocik, also from Knoxville, Tenn. – Attends Farragut High School and competed on the Small Varsity Jazz National Championship team in 2018 and 2019. She was also Farragut’s Heisman High School Scholarship Award winner.
• Nina Andrianos, from Shelby Township, Mich. Currently a student at Utica High School where she was the captain of the dance team helping to lead them to their team’s highest finish at UDA Nationals in 2020.
• Josie Cahall, from Lewis Center, Ohio – Josie attends Olentangy Orange High School and is on the Premier Company at the North Pointe Dance Academy which won a National Titles in 2019 at Mark of Excellence.
• Jesslene O’Loughlin, from Toledo, Ohio – Jesslene is currently a student at St. Ursula Academy where she’s an AP Scholar with Honors and helped lead her team to their first ever National Championship in the Small Pom Division in 2020.
• Marley Blanchard, from Lafayette, La. – Attends St. Thomas More and was a co-captain for a program that has won 21 national championships all-time including both the Medium Varisty Pom and Jazz titles in 2020.

“This is undoubtedly a talented group, but what makes me most excited about them joining our program is their character,” said McGhee. “They’ll fit in very well into our team and the larger campus community. We’ve got such an exciting and gifted group of dancers! I am very much looking forward to helping the entire team maximize our potential this next season.”

The Buckeyes’ dance program is coming off a national championship in the jazz division at the 2020 Universal Cheer & Dance Association College National Championships and a silver medal in the pom category. The national championship was Ohio State’s fourth title in the past three years.