By Leilani Valero.
Gold Rush had tryouts in March. Gold Rush announced 17 girls to the 34th line for next year.
New officers include rising senior captain Bethany Findley, rising senior first lieutenant Reese Cope, rising senior lieutenant Julia Chambers and rising sophomore lieutenant Hannah Jordan.
“I have expectations of my team being well rounded humans with exceptional character but what matters more to me is how they are seen as human beings,” director Allison Hester said. “Rookies are going to look to the veterans for guidance and this allows the veterans to take them under their wing, creating a strong sisterhood.”
Hester said that the team will be a mix of half veterans and half rookies.
“I raise the bar a little bit higher each year than the year before, and each new team always rises above it,” Hester said. “So, my expectations are high.”
Gold Rush wants girls on their team that are kind, inclusive and respectful to everyone. Never want any of her girls’ characters to be in question. They are representative of Gold Rush and Abilene High as a whole inside and outside of school.
“We are super excited for next year since we will have a slightly bigger team than this year,” Findley said. “We’ve seen a lot of potential in the new girls joining the team.”
Gold Rush makes sure to help each dancer progress individually while maintaining a unified atmosphere throughout the season due to the variety of skill levels.
“We haven’t gotten a chance to be together honestly but I’m glad to see everyone that’s joining,” rising sophomore Neveah Damian said. “I feel good about them they’re all super sweet and have beautiful personalities. Even though we’re kind of small, everyone on the team now and even the new team members have made it very clear that no matter what we can support one another and are always happy for each other.”
Hester will decide on a show theme during officer camp in June.
“I’m really excited for next year,” rising sophomore Audrey Williams said. “Football season was so fun, so I’m really excited for the new girls to experience that too. This team has truly become like my second family, and I couldn’t be more grateful for every opportunity that I’ve been given thanks to them.”
Cope said that their strengths are being there for each other, constantly helping and pushing each other to be the best dancer and person that we can be.
“We’ve all helped each other grow as a person and in different areas of dance,” Cope said. “We just need to make sure we’re utilizing it in the best way possible because we have so many dances throughout the year that we have to prepare for.”
