Maura Higgins is sitting the record straight after her accidental lift on Dancing With the Stars’ Dedication Night.
“Oh, well, it wasn’t a lift,” Higgins, 35, exclusively told Us after the Tuesday, October 20, live show. “No matter what, it was Mark [Ballas]’s fault. It wasn’t mine.”
Higgins and Ballas, 40, performed an Ireland-inspired paso doble to “I’m Shipping Up to Boston” by Dropkick Murphys, earning a total score of 35 out of 40 from the judges. While the duo’s routine impressed most of the judges, Carrie Ann Inaba noticed an illegal lift in the number. (Inaba, 58, is often a stickler for the ballroom rules, calling out dancers for deviating from the style guidelines.)
“It was a boost,” Ballas clarified to Us. “Maybe I boosted you too hard. My bad, I got excited.”
As Ballas insisted that the number “was meant to go this way,” the Love Island alum maintained her innocence.
“I don’t lift that high by myself, let me tell you,” Higgins quipped before Ballas acknowledged that she’s as light as “a feather.”
Ballas continued, “I might have just, you know, hit it a little too hard.”
Despite Inaba’s critiques, Higgins and Ballas were thrilled by their performance.
“It was just honestly incredible, and, obviously, having Lucky [Howard] here as well was the cherry on top,” Higgins gushed, referring to the champion Irish dancer who joined the routine. “I did two weeks [of lessons], and Lucky had to show off. He did, bless him.”
The routine was equally special for Ballas.
“I recently found out that on my granddad’s side, his mother was Irish as well, and [had] the last name was Higgins, which is wild,” Ballas noted on Tuesday. “I’ve been to Ireland many times. I’ve been around. I love the Irish people. I love the vibes.”
He continued, “It was amazing to learn from a six-time world champion here. Learning to do the correct steps was so cool.”
According to Higgins and Ballas, including Howard in their routine was “very serendipitous.”
“Mark showed me a video of Lucky dancing, like, weeks and weeks ago, before even Dedication Night was a conversation,” Higgins quipped. “Then, we ended up having Lucky [in the dance]. It was, like, meant to be!”
Tuesday’s episode ended without an elimination, meaning Higgins and her ballroom competitors will all return for Halloween Night featuring Mark’s mom, Shirley Ballas, as the guest judge.
Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC and Disney+ Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
