When the wet and stormy weather blows in this winter, more than 20 local high school girls will be enjoying the sun in Orlando, Fla.

The Burlington-Edison High School dance team recently qualified for the Universal Dance Association’s National Dance Team Championships. The event, which takes place Jan. 30 - Feb. 1, will pit the team against some of the best competitors in the country.

The girls qualified for the event by taking part in one of the association’s dance camps at the University of Puget Sound earlier this month. There, group members memorized three individual routines each over four days, and were judged for skill and technical ability, coach Susie Perry said.

Judges awarded ribbons, which were worth points. The team with the most points combined placed first.

Perry said the national competition will be similar to dance events that are shown on ESPN and ESPN2. The competition will take place at the Walt Disney World Resort.

This year marks the fifth time a Burlington-Edison dance team will travel to nationals under Perry, who had coached the team for 18 years prior to taking the past two years off.

None of the girls on the team have participated in nationals, Perry said, because the last time the team made the trip was in 2005. The remaining girls from that team graduated in June.

Cassandra Reyna, 16, said she got involved with the team her freshman year after seeing her older sister, Maria, compete.

“It seemed like a lot of fun and it was a good activity because I watched them at football games,” said Cassandra, now in her third year.

Cassandra said the team still needs to work on individual skills and team bonding, but said the group of 22 girls is committed to the team.

“(The competition) is a big thing for our team. When they announced it at dance camp, some of our girls actually cried,” she said.

Being a part of the squad takes dedication and commitment, Perry said. Unlike the football or basketball season, the group’s season goes from May until February.

The girls typically practice an hour per day during the school year, and hold one practice in the evenings per week. In the summer, two two-hour practices are held.

During those workouts, team members do strength training, bonding and aerobic exercise to stay fit, Cassandra said.

The group performs at athletic events during the school year and dance camps during the summer.

“People don’t realize how much the girls put into it,” said Cassandra’s mother, Laura. “The dance team actually practices longer than the football team does.”

The team will likely be holding some sort of fundraiser in the future to help pay for the trip to Florida, which will cost about $1,000 per girl, Laura Reyna said.

Just being on the team costs about $1,200 per girl to cover expenses and travel costs. To offset those expenses, the team holds a car wash-a-thon each year.

Despite the financial challenges, all involved parties are looking forward to the trip.

“This is my fourth year being a dance team mom, and I’m so proud of our team and the girls and how hard they work,” Laura Reyna said.