The Edina Hip Hop Dance Club has had a history of dancing at a Minnesota Timberwolves game at Target Center to end their season. This tradition was started years ago by the previous coach of the team who danced with the Timberwolves dance team. This year, senior members like Natalie Mosakowski took the floor at Target Center for the last time. “It was honestly bittersweet,” Mosakowski said. “It was my last time dancing with the team, and while it was a ton of fun, I couldn’t shake the sadness around not dancing with them again.”
Even though the performances at the games first started with the previous coach of the team, the current coach, Jess Lynn, has managed to take over and keep the tradition of dancing at the Timberwolves games to end the season alive.
“[Dancing at the game] feels so great!” Mosakowski said. “It is so cool to perform in such a huge venue and then be able to watch the game afterwards.”
Sophomore Jeevika Aggarwal, one of the newest additions to the team, shared her favorite anecdote from her first ever performance this year at the Timberwolves game. “I thought it was really funny and cute when we were all trying to get one group picture together, but every time we tried taking one we were interrupted and were rushed somewhere else,” she said.
Despite their initial nerves due to the size of the crowd, the team pushed through their nervousness and ended their last performance of the 2024–25 season smoothly. Senior Joyel Brujan felt something other than fear during her last performance. “It was definitely nerve wracking, but the previous experiences of dancing at the Timberwolves games made it quite thrilling,” she said. “The difference in the atmosphere between the pepfests and the basketball game was immense but it was overall so much fun and unlike any of my previous experiences.” Brujan wasn’t the only dancer motivated by the crowd. Aggarwal fought through her initial anxiety due to it being her first time dancing at the game and was able to feed off the crowd’s energy to deliver a great performance. “Me personally, I was really nervous backstage, but once I got on the stage I was like, ‘oh heck yeah, I don’t care if y’all are here but look at me, I’m awesome.’ The crowd motivated me to dance better.”
To most of the members on the team, this season has been by far the most unforgettable, and it’ll be hard to move on from their new found community. “It’s honestly heartbreaking. I love them all so much and I can’t imagine a team without them,” Aggarwal said. “It’s going to be hard but I’m really happy for them and glad they’re moving on with their life. I will forever be grateful for this family.”
