DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - After completing a grueling summer camp and a round of open tryouts under the new coaching staff, the 2013-14 Bethune-Cookman cheerleading roster is in the books. Cheerleading coaches Becky Woodson and John Woodson, Jr. announced on Saturday the 30-member roster and team alternates.
“We are so pleased to welcome the new Wildcats Cheerleaders,” Becky Woodson said. “We feel that this team's talent level will display performances that fans have never seen before from the B-CU cheerleading program.”
The process for some started over a month ago, when the new coaches began accepting video submissions for camp selection. Those select underwent 14 days of vigorous training to hone required skills. 26 members of this year's squad come from those chosen for camp, including five that have competed at the world championships. The remaining members made the team through this week's open tryout, with over 60 candidates working out to make the team.
The squad has already undergone outstanding improvements, proven by a recent trip for select team hopefuls to the Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) camp in Philadelphia, during which the Wildcats logged top-tier finishes in fight song cheer (second), sideline cheer (fourth) and team cheer (sixth) to rank fourth overall in the competition.
“We believe that this group will set the standard in years to come for B-CU Cheerleading,” Woodson said. “This team is disciplined and now knows exactly what we expect. We are delighted to have five world class athletes on the team and hope to attract and recruit more talented athletes for next season and into the future.”
The 2013-14 Bethune-Cookman University Cheerleading Official Roster
Ashley Belcher
Tre'Donavouis Bush
Blair Coley
Arielle Copeland
Yazmin Davies
Tamera Demps
Tonae Filer
Tarynn Gregg
Stantavious Hill
Deborah Johnson
Kenya Lawrence
Shanaya Martin
Monique Ming
Mikayla Norton
Alexis Oliver
Takeia Porter
Jyrah Purcell
Brianna Ransom
Gabby Smith
Lenisha Smith
Kimberley Smith
Imani Stevens
Toni Taylor
Semaria Tillman
Devin Tunnage
Dontia Warmack
Tiffany Wiggleton
Monica Wilkinson
Alana Williams
Sharnell Young
2013-14 Team Alternates
Tyreka Bradley
Tiijah Johnson
Tokeema Johnson
Dominique Lindsay
The official B-CU cheerleading squad will make its first appearance on Sunday, August 18, at B-CU football's 2013 Fan Day, 5:30 p.m. at the B-CU practice fields and Richard V. Moore Gymnasium. B-CU's first game of the 2013 football season is September 1 in the John Merritt Classic in Nashville, Tenn. versus Tennessee State.
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