Meet the 8 NHSPA Step Quarterfinalists

The Queen Crusaders Step Team hails from Monsignor Scanlan High School. Their team is a sisterhood and teaches steppers how to feel like a Queen and accept who they are. In 2022, they placed first in the World of Step Regional competition and Molloy College Talent Competition.

The Xplosive Stepperz hail from Brentwood High School and was founded in October 2021. Within their first year, they received numerous prestigious awards. They are Long Island's only competing step team and have one of the youngest coaching staff in the region. Despite only being established less than two years ago, Xplosive continues to impress the judges and always puts on an incredible show. Most recently they qualified for the YouthStepUSA National Championship this upcoming May. Tick... Tick... BOOM!

The Nottingham HS Step Team has been stomping the Hamilton grounds with the Nottingham school spirit for several years. NHS Step Team actively performs at basketball games and various events at the school, throughout Hamilton Township and in Trenton, N.J. This year, the 13 active members are advised by Trish Tammaro and coached by NHS alumna Rachel Sanchez.

Art of Stepping EdTech focuses on providing digital STEAM curriculum for students and features a platform that acts as an alternative to traditional “offline” dance and math classes. Art of Stepping earned Presidential Awards under President Obama and has performed on the White House Lawn and the Ellipse.

Trifecta Steppers hails from New Rochelle High School and was created this year to increase and enhance camaraderie among New Rochelle students. The team encourages students to step out of their comfort zones and allows youth to form a strong bond and support system while giving them a voice to be “Confident, Inspiring, Vibrant and Ambitious.”

The Vision Steppers were formed two decades ago at Immaculate Conception School in the South Bronx, N.Y. Vision started as a step team of seven for girls grades 6 and 7 with 10 girls as their founding members. From that small group, Vision steppers has grown to more than 60 members strong, ranging in age from 6th Grade to sophomore year in college. As a group they have performed and competed in many different cities across the country.

Established in 2002, the Central High School Step Team was revived in 2021, growing to 15 performers. In addition to performing at games, the team has become more than a club; it has become the catalyst for a middle school team and is spreading the word of step throughout the region, giving students a place to feel they belong.

Exquisite Force Dance Team is in its fourth year of competition and is second under its own brand and company. The team prides itself on having the power of unified sufficiency and to have its own individualities yet come together and be one.