Dragonette Drill Team tryouts were held on March 2 in the gym. The girls trying out go through a process of applications, meetings, clinics, and learning the tryout dances to prepare for the long-awaited day.
“My favorite memory from tryouts is getting there early,” officer candidate Kate Sanches said. “Even though we’re all nervous and tired, we’re also excited, and super positive.”
Tryouts start at around 8 am and last all day, up until 2 pm when officer reveal occurs. During this time, the girls trying out are not allowed to have technology.
“I think my favorite part of tryouts is that we don’t have phones, so we get to hang out all day,” Officer Kadie Callaway said. “It’s fun to get to bond with the other girls there, and get to know each other.”
Although the drill team becomes a close-knit group, tryouts are intense and competitive. The team members are chosen by a break in the scores, where individual scores are compared. The judges and the director then take the top scores to determine who makes the team.
“Determining who makes the team is based on their dance ability, from the three judges that evaluate them, from the tryout routine, and then the 4 different categories, military, hip-hop, jazz, and kick,” director Lisa Fuller said. “We also look at grades and attendance, and they have a director’s score as well, which is based on whether or not they’ve had a discipline issue or any attendance issues.”
The judges are handpicked by the director. They come on the day of tryouts and spend all day watching the girls dance and giving them scores. The scores from the three judges are then added up, and that is how the girls are picked.
“The judges are selected by their dance background and familiarity with the program,” Fuller said. “We’ve been very fortunate to have had several judges that are former Dragonettes, and this year all the judges have been officers on the team, so they have that connection with the team, and they understand how our program works.”
The tryout process is long, but the girls look forward to the reveals at the end.
“I’m most excited for reveals,” Major Sterling Smith said. “The seniors get to do the skits and it’s super fun.”
Tryouts can be stressful, but by the end of the day, everyone involved walks away with fond memories.
“My favorite memory from tryouts is that at the end of the day, you get to see the excitement of people that have put a lot of time and effort into the dance, and have then been selected as next year’s officers and major,” Fuller said. “What really means a lot to me is when everyone, even those who didn’t make officer, go up and congratulate and hug each other, and remember they’re part of the team.”
The 2024-2025 officers and drill team members are:
Major: Kaitlin Bobo
Captains: Acacia Russell, Alyssia Scott, Ella Furniss, Kate Sanches, and Teyah Watts
Team members: Adorabella Bennett, Aimee Cantu, Akeenah Driver, Alyssa Corpus, Alyssa Delgado, Audree Gillepsie, Azul Lavin, Briana Sanchez, Cire Thomas, Daisy Greer, De-Airiana Ballard, Destiny Thompson, Fallon Pope, Gabby Byrd, Gracie Rodriguez, Hala Hassan, Hannah Harkness, I’deisha Howard-Sterns, Jasmine Thorn, Kelsi Johnson, Kyndall Lambert, Madalyn Poskey, Madison Price, Maggie Dermakardejian, Meiry Luna, Na’khia Keggler, Nazyiah Jones, Olivia Mosier, Olivia Williamson, Precious King, Rhodesia Robertson, Syria Freeney, Zoe Anderson
