Diamonds in the rough Temple News
Fourteen girls stuffed into an aerosol-filled room the size of a cubicle snapped on tights and pushed in bobby pins. Warm-up outfits were stripped off, and shimmering Cherry and White body suits replaced them.
Junior Stephanie McCaffrey piped up amid the laughter and chitchat.
“Welcome to the life of a Diamond Gem.”
But to be a member of Temple’s dance team entails more than the girls’ glittery faces and pom-poms might lead on.
On Jan. 16, the Diamond Gems placed fourth at the 2010 Universal Dance Association College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championship held at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Fla.
“We were too inexperienced to be nervous because we didn’t know what any other team had, but we know what we had, and we looked at the whole thing like, ‘Well, we’re just going to do our own thing,’ and it worked out,” junior Lacie McGowan said.
“And, we’re all hams, so being in front of a lot of people gave us the extra energy,” McCaffrey added. This year’s trip to Nationals was a first for the team, which, until now, has gone three years without a steady coach.
“Every team in our division has competed at least once before, if not for the past 10 to 15 years,” said Megan Teesdale, the team’s coach since August 2009. “It was amazing to not only crack the Top 40 percent but the Top 5 teams.”
For a group of girls who was used to supporting other athletic teams, the adrenaline rush that comes from being the center of attention was worth the trip to Orlando.
