Kalamazoo, Michigan – Trine's synchronized skating team debuted their program and participated in the first synchronized skating competition in University history last weekend. The team competed in the open-collegiate division at Kick-Off Classic and placed third out of five teams from around the Midwest. The team skated a lively 'Dia de los Muertos' inspired program and executed a technically clean performance earning them positive remarks from both judges and spectators.

"This team has been working tirelessly to become unified and bring this program to life and I couldn't be more proud of them" glowed Coach Rachel Franchock, "Preparing a first-year synchro team to compete is a lot of work. Not only have we been hustling to put out a strong performance on the ice, but we've also been working hard to build the foundation for the positive team culture we want this program to grow from. Our skaters have definitely stepped up to the challenge and I can't wait to see all they accomplish this season on and off the ice."

The Inaugural synchronized skating team consists of 10 skaters from around the US including two skaters from California, one from Missouri, and two from the East Coast (North Carolina and Virginia). They bring a variety of individual and synchronized skating experience to the team including Christina Zaitsev (Fishers, Ind.) who brings international competitive experience as a Team USA Pairs Skater.

"It's been a blessing and a challenge to have such a diverse team for our first season" admitted coach Franchock, "At first, we all struggled to assimilate our various backgrounds and truly work as a team, but now we are starting to speak the same language and are beginning to find our groove. It's been fun to start highlighting our talented freestyle skaters a bit more and watch our seasoned synchro skaters help their neighbors throughout the program. We're excited to show off the improvements we've made to at our upcoming competitions."

The synchronized skating team will compete at their second of four competitions this coming weekend in Ann Arbor, MI at the Dr. Porter Synchronized Skating Classic. The team will compete on Sunday, December 2, against 13 other schools from the Midwest and East coast.

Final Standings for the Open-Collegiate Division

1. Adrian College
2. Grand Valley State University
3. Trine University
4. Western Michigan University
5. Ohio University