This year, tryouts for Traditional Competitive Cheer (TCC) were held earlier so the cheerleaders could start preparing for their season, which starts in November, cheerleading coach Maecy Williams said.
The season officially starts in November and goes until February break, Williams said. During that time they practice four times a week, she added.
“Now we had tryouts in August to start a little bit earlier,” Williams said. “So in September and October, we’re practicing one day a week just to get the girls warmed up and feel more comfortable before the season starts.”
Last year, the first year of TCC, was really rushed, cheerleader Alice Li said. The team started practice in November and didn’t have enough time to get the basics mastered, she added.
“We started recruiting a lot earlier, and our first competition is in November,” Li said. “We just wanted to get the groups ready and have a routine.”
After tryouts are over and the roster and schedule are released, a choreographer comes in and teaches the cheerleaders their routine, cheerleading captain Alexa Garcia said. From there, they learn and practice their routines until their first competition, she added.
“We can’t throw them (the stunts) if we don’t feel comfortable doing it because it’s a safety hazard,” Garcia said. “We definitely need a lot of time to get to the point where we feel (comfortable) enough to be competent. Starting later kind of messes that up.”
Everyone on the TCC team is also on the sideline cheer team, Li said.
“They didn’t take any new people this year, just because they want people who already have stunting skills,” Li said.
While practices start in the fall, the official TCC season and competitions start in the winter, Garcia said.
“You need that time, because we have to learn the routine beforehand, and then just get used to it,” Garcia added.
For this season, the TCC team is hoping to go to Nationals again, Garcia said. Even though they’ve only had a few practices so far, their team is looking good, she adds.
“I think I can speak for all of us when I say that we feel pretty great about this season and we still have a lot of time to prepare,” Garcia said. “I know for a fact that all of the girls on the team are very driven, and they want to work hard and they want to be great. So I definitely think that we’re in for a really great season.”
