Ready…5,6,7,8!
Spartan cheerleaders are already recruiting new cheerleaders for next year’s cheer squad. In order to get the incoming freshman ready for tryouts, the cheerleaders have been conducting Irving Cheer Club for the past three years.
“The cheerleaders have a lot of different chants and cheers to memorize, so this helps them get a head start for the upcoming cheer season,” said senior Emili Zamfino.
At the Irving Invasion, the rising freshmen were given the opportunity to fill out forms at the cheer booth if they were interested in cheering next year. This is just the first of many opportunities to join that they will have from now until tryouts in August.
Irving Cheer Club is a great way for eighth graders to get to know their future team mates and feel more comfortable trying out for the sport.
“We get to know them so they already have upperclassmen friends when they start high school,” said Zamfino. “We want them to be able to look up to us, so we set good examples for them.”
The club meets once a week at Irving. They start off with stretching, and teach basic motions, cheers, chants, jumps, and sometimes stunting. For kids who have never cheered before this is the perfect place to learn the fundamentals.
“I didn’t go to [Irving Cheer Club], and when I came to tryouts I was very overwhelmed,” said sophomore Valerie Rosenau.
Irving Cheer club doesn’t only help the eighth graders, it helps the current WS cheerleaders as well. It is a way for them to stay involved while they are out of season, and it is also a great way to gain leadership experience.
“It will improve everyone’s skills, making for a stronger cheer team,” said senior Nicky Robitaille.
Irving Cheer Club will start their fourth consecutive year later this spring. With a lot of interest generated at the Irving Invasion, hopefully the outcome at Irving Cheer Club will be better than ever. Attending Irving Cheer Club really gives eighth graders a head start for tryouts, and is a great way to start bonding with other girls that are already on the team.
“They enjoy getting to know their future teammates,” said Robitaille.
