FEATURE
5
during one stunt-filled weekend. Last year, 35 girls and 22 guys tried out, traveling from as far away as Texas, Colorado and Chicago. Only 30 made the cut. When the list of new squad members is posted, the work begins.
Practice makes perfect
After the cheerleaders make the team — 14 girls and 16 guys — they are committed to attending practice twice per week and workouts at 6:30 a.m. twice per week. Those sessions prove valuable for improvement in both athleticism and cheerleading skills. Borgmeir used his time in the morning workouts throughout college to work with a nutritionist to put on 45 pounds of muscle.
The team practices cheerleading skills at G-Force Athletics, 725 N. Second St., on a springboard floor covered with mats. It's a good thing, too, because stunts, pyramids, tumbling and basket tosses can take lots of practice.
"When you don't have it exactly perfected it can be scary." Bellinger says. "I've actually kicked a guy in the chest and he somehow caught me."
Continued on page 6
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Photos by Weston White/KANSAN
Photo of Wesley Harden
Top. Scott Borgmier, Overland Park senior, yells through a megaphone during last Saturday's football game against Duke. Borgmier be cheering for more than five years and says there is always something new to learn in cheerleading.
Left: Lizzie Bellinger, Plano, Texas, senior, stands on top of a pyramid during a practice last week. Bellinger was the Sports illustrated cheerleader of the week in early September.
Right: Two Kansas cheerleaders Wave the Wheat along with the crowd after a Kansas touchdown against Duke last Saturday.
THE WAVE SEPTEMBER 25, 2009