With the 2024-25 season coming to a close, cheer tryouts begin to approach this spring, with both directors and athletes gearing up for a season of continued growth.
“I am so grateful that our program has continued to thrive and be successful throughout the years…We have seen some really strong and talented athletes who are registered for tryouts, and I am excited to see what they bring,” commented Program Director Haley Elkin, “I am also looking forward to seeing our veteran athletes come out even stronger for tryouts and prove why they should make the team again.”
In 2025, Elkin seeks to evolve the team back to its original co-ed style, one incorporating more co-ed stunting, utilizing one stuntman and one flyer, in addition to the multi-base stunting already in use.
“We are hosting a ‘Bring a Boy to Practice’ on Feb.20, which I hope will bring some men to our program, and we will be hosting a co-ed open practice soon as well where we will have the opportunity to invite some men to join our program,” said Elkin.
Cheer tryouts typically follow a two-day format, day one focused on learning tryout material, and the second day being when the learned material is performed in front of a panel of judges.
“I have tweaked our tryout process, and we are now holding tryouts in an ‘invitation-only’ format, where athletes send in a video submission of our fight song and any stunting experience they have, and based on that video, we invite them to in-person tryouts on April 5 and 6,” Elkin said.
If athletes are invited to in-person tryouts, they’re then allowed a month to learn and rehearse their material, being one dance and one cheer. On the first day of tryouts, athletes are able to practice and receive help, advice, and tips from current coaches and graduating senior cheerleaders, as well as take the fitness test. The second day of tryouts is when this material if performed in front of a panel of judges.”
Following this extensive process, judges compile scores and select the upcoming season’s team, posting results to Instagram. “I am hopeful that this new format will be less stressful and give athletes ample time to learn the material and feel ready to showcase it at tryouts,” Elkin explained.
Sophomore Lauren Jane Micheal is well-versed in this system and eagerly awaiting tryouts this April.
“The most exciting part for me is the excitement of the new opportunity that tryouts bring. A new team with new skills and an excitement about being a Whitworth Cheerleader,” Micheal said, “Seeing everyone’s reactions when they make the team is so special for me and reminds me of why we work so hard to keep the program thriving.”
Elkin encourages any Whitworth students considering trying out for cheer to do so with confidence. “We take cheerleaders all the time who have never had formal cheerleading experience. I am just looking for athletes who are hardworking and have a positive attitude. We are not looking for athletes to be perfect, we are looking for potential and excitement about our mission.”
Attending these tryouts opens the door to a plethora of newfound gains, the community being the greatest among these.
“The Whitworth Cheerleading program has created a culture surrounded around community and love. My biggest hope for next season is to continue to cultivate that supportive culture,” Micheal said, “Cheerleading bonds its athletes in a way that turns teammates into family.”
Whitworth Cheer looks forward to a season of growth, development, and opportunities to return to classicism and roots.
