Jeanine Mason takes the win for SYTYCD

By April MacIntyre Aug 8, 2009, 4:20 GMT

08/02/2009 - Nigel Lythgoe - Nigel Lythgoe\'s adrenalin-filled fifth season of the summer hit "So You Think You Can Dance" finished with a surprise conclusion tonight as Jeanine Mason was named the champion on the two-hour season finale broadcast live from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood. © Sylvain Gaboury / PR Photos

Nigel Lythgoe's adrenalin-filled fifth season of the summer hit "So You Think You Can Dance" finished with a surprise conclusion tonight as Jeanine Mason was named the champion on the two-hour season finale broadcast live from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood.

Mason, 18, a Contemporary dancer from Pinecrest, FL received the most votes out of the record-breaking 21.6 million votes cast.

Additionally, she danced off with the cash prize of $250,000, the title of America’s Favorite Dancer and a cover feature in the November issue of Dance Spirit Magazine.

Mason’s fellow finalists – Brandon Bryant, Evan Kasprzak and Kayla Radomski – were eliminated as host Cat Deeley revealed the voting results. Mason had this to say about winning SYTYCD: “This has been the craziest time of my life, but in the moments when I thought I absolutely could not do it, it was the fans and their immense support that got me through. So I have to thank you!”

In addition, the Season Five finale featured performances by this season’s Top 20 dancers, Hip Hop dance team The Rage Boyz Crew and Talia Fowler, winner of Season Two of “So You Think You Can Dance Australia.”

A special featuring fan-favorite routines from previous seasons will air Wednesday, Sept. 2 (8:00-8:58 PM ET/PT), and the sixth season of the original dance competition will premiere Wednesday, Sept. 9 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.

This season’s Top 10 dancers will participate in the 40-city SYTYCD Tour 2009. The tour kicks off Sunday, Sept. 20 in Manchester, NH, and tickets are on sale now. Visit fox.com/dance for more information.