'SYTYCD:' And the winner is...

Melanie Moore is the season eight winner.

Here's more, from the Fox news release:

"The eighth season of 'So You Think You Can Dance' came to an exciting conclusion tonight as Melanie Moore, 19, a contemporary dancer from Marietta, Ga., was named America’s favorite dancer and awarded a cash prize of $250,000. She will be featured on the cover of Dance Spirit magazine, and will be recognized as a Gatorade athlete on gatorade.com and in the new G Series FIT print campaign.

Fans are invited to cast their vote for their favorite G Series FIT ad in which Moore will appear. Voting is open now at www.fox.com/dance, and will conclude on Aug. 24. The ad with the most votes will be featured in the November issue of Dance Spirit magazine.

Fellow finalists – Tadd Gadduang, Marko Germar and Sasha Mallory – were eliminated as host Cat Deeley revealed the voting results.

Moore had this to say about winning 'So You Think You Can Dance: “Winning means the world to me. It is such a major stepping-stone, and I have learned so much through this experience. I have so much more to learn, and I have decided that I want to go back to school for dance. Winning this competition not only started me on that path, but also made my mom and dad so proud. Thank you to the fans who supported me on this journey. It means so much to me that I was able to move people in the same way that dance moves me.”