The Cal State Long Beach cheer team held tryouts at the Goldmine east gym Friday and Saturday.
Seventeen women and two men demonstrated their ability to execute technical cheer skills while keeping a high level of enthusiasm in front of a panel of five judges.
Competitors were judged on their running and standing tumble ability, handsprings, coed stunts and other acrobatics by former CSULB alums, including cheer professionals, advisers and coaches.
Dance Team Coach Rey Lozano is the interim coach for the cheer team until an official coach is hired next semester.
“We are not really trying to change the format [of auditions] from last year” considering of the events that occurred, Lozano said.
Coach Eric Anderson was dismissed in April after he allowed a graduate to compete. The team forfeited its National Cheerleaders Association Small Coed Division I championship title after the non-student was discovered.
Lozano told the cheer team that the judges understood the position that the squad is in, and that next semester’s members should demonstrate the much-needed leadership skills to hold the team together.
The cheer team’s elite reputation is why some prospective students choose to come to CSULB, Beach Pride Center office assistant Kasey Schoen said.
Incoming freshman Tristian Washington said the cheer squad was the reason she decided to apply. She emphasized that she was ready for the challenge of competition for the fall semester.
Schoen said that she did not notice a change in the number of applicants for the CSULB cheer team despite the circumstances.
According to Sylvana Cicero, University Student Union assistant director of programs and cheer team supervisor, the cheerleaders are “university ambassadors” and the next step is working on rebuilding the team’s reputation and moving on.
The new faces will have to work on the public relations aspect of the team’s legacy by working with the school and community, she said.
With the support of Associate Students Inc., Cicero said she is excited to get the cheer squad back on track.
This year’s cheer squad had 24 members. Among the regular members there will also be alternates in case of injuries or emergencies.
The judges and coach Lozano still need to look at video submissions by competitors that live too far away and are holding supplemental auditions for returning members that could not make these tryouts.
Schoen said that a preliminary list should be posted within a week online at BeachPride.com.
CSULB’s cheer squad has consistently placed in the top three in the USA and NCA National Competitions, placing in second place at the 2010 NCA nationals and first in the 2009 USA nationals.