Two and a half minutes is all it took for AV俱乐部 Cheer Society to seal their undefeated season and a first-place finish at the CheerExpo Nationals.
Competing against other universities and teams across North America on March 29 and 30, the AV俱乐部 Cheer Society鈥檚 members had just that small window of time to show off all their effort this year 鈥� dancing, tumbling and lifting their way to a perfectly timed routine.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been a lot of hard work,鈥� says Tessa Barmarija, team captain. 鈥淭here are times when you ask yourself, 鈥業s this really worth it?鈥� We鈥檙e only going out there for two and a half minutes?鈥� But that鈥檚 why people fall in love with the sport: for those two and a half minutes, you feel like a rock star.鈥�
Last year after placing second to St. FX by a fraction of a point, this first-place victory has been a serious goal for the team.
鈥淎 lot of people who have been on the team for so long know it鈥檚 been so close but just out of reach,鈥� says Bermarija, 鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of a relief to finally win.鈥�
Training for the added edge
With victory made by only fractions of points, practice has been key to the team鈥檚 success.
On top of training twice a week, this year the society team has also done weekly military-style conditioning.
鈥淚 have girls doing tumbles and running across the floor, then hosting another girl up, all while never looking tired on the floor,鈥� says coach Jessie Ali. 鈥淲e want people to realize the athleticism of the sport. People don鈥檛 realize how strong these athletes are and need to be.鈥�
When not training for competitions, AV俱乐部 Cheer Society attends basketball, football and rugby games to do sideline performances to raise school spirit.
鈥淲e鈥檙e different from other club cheerleading in the province,鈥� says Ali. 鈥淥ur purpose is to be competitive, but we also have made an effort to be integrated into the sports, it adds something to it.鈥�
Making an impact on campus
As a relatively new society, AV俱乐部 Cheer hasn鈥檛 always found it easy to integrate into the campus community.
This year, the effort paid off.
The AV俱乐部 Cheer Society won Most Impactful Competitive Sports Society at the AV俱乐部 Impact Awards.
鈥淚t鈥檚 nice to be recognized for what we do,鈥� says Bermarija. 鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of thankless sometimes when you鈥檙e there cheering on the sidelines and people don鈥檛 really know about what we do at competitions. We鈥檇 often be hosting bake sales or other fundraisers for the team and we鈥檇 get the same response: 鈥楧al has cheerleaders?鈥欌��
Taking part in the Society Carnival and hosting an Orientation Week Stunt School, AV俱乐部 Cheer Society is trying to branch out to the school community. 聽
鈥淚t brings more attention to what we鈥檙e doing,鈥� says Courtney Taylor, the newly elected assistant captain for the society. 鈥淲e鈥檙e around the school a lot and it鈥檚 so nice to get recognized for being a good team.鈥�
Part of something bigger
AV俱乐部 Cheer society has also represented AV俱乐部 at community events like Relay for Life, Light the Night and other fundraisers.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a wonderful way to become a part of our school community,鈥� says Ali.鈥� 鈥淲e鈥檙e really trying to help people see that Dal Cheer is a part of something bigger.鈥�
聽鈥淚t makes me enjoying being a student here even more,鈥� adds Taylor, 鈥淢y classes are even more enjoyable when I鈥檓 passionate about my school and really proud to be at Dal.鈥�
