EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — A UTEP dancer who started training at age 12 is taking her next step onto a pro stage after being selected for the Phoenix Suns dance team.

Ciria Eden, a member of the UTEP dance program, said she began dancing in middle school at Indian Ridge, where she joined a dance class “for fun.” She later attended Hanks and danced with the Silhouettes dance team, which competed and took part in community events, including performing at basketball, football and baseball games.

Eden said she then joined the UTEP dance team, where she competed at NDA for three consecutive years.

She said the team placed seventh in her first year, made finals her second year and won a national championship her third year. Eden said the championship is represented by the “2026 banner” displayed in the studio. She said the UTEP dance team has won two national championships.

“It was just very cool to be a part of something so homegrown and just very tight-knit and unified, and I never wanted to leave,” Eden said.

UTEP dancer selected for Phoenix Suns dance team, coach praises her rise (credit: KFOX14/CBS4)

Heading into her fourth year at UTEP, Eden said she decided to “take a leap of faith” and audition for a professional dance team. She said she tried out for the Phoenix Suns dance team “in hopes to make it and I did.”

Crystal Ortiz, Eden’s coach, said Eden stood out early.

“She was always one of the stars of her high school team,” Ortiz said. “So it was no surprise to me that she made the UTEP dance team. It was no surprise to me she became a leader.”

Eden said she plans to remain a UTEP student while in Phoenix and is working through how to complete her remaining coursework. She said she has about three or four semesters left and had planned to stay another year plus a semester for student teaching. Eden said she is navigating online classes and said she is being allowed to have an internship in Phoenix, adding that the professional dance opportunity counts as a course.

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