CHARLOTTE CATHOLIC DANCE TEAM ALWAYS ON THE MOVE

Performing in front of 3.500 football fans on a Friday Night can be quite intimidating for most teenagers.  One false move and everyone in the stands may notice.  The twenty young ladies on the Charlotte Catholic Dance Team thrive on this pressure. Under the direction of Head Coach Jennifer Schexnayder, the Cougars Dance Team performs unique routines for the very supportive Cougar Fans.

Coach Schexnayder is in her fifth year coaching dance at Charlotte Catholic.

“Our job is to show spirit and be the halftime entertainment for all our fans.  We entertain at football and basketball games as well as at many other events in the community. Our team works very hard and we have improved with each year.”

The 20 team members are equally divided between freshman, sophomores, juniors and seniors. Eighty young ladies auditioned for the team last spring. After the team was announced, the young ladies spent countless hours preparing for summer dance camp and competitions.  At camp the team learns many of the routines they will employ throughout the year. Last summer the team captured 2nd Place at the American Superstars Dance Competition in Charleston, SC.  The year prior, the team finished second at the Wide World of Sports facility in Orlando, FL.

 In addition to practicing for three hours every week and the busy summer schedule, many of the team members also attend various dance classes throughout Charlotte.

Senior Co-Captain Jeanna Farley spends nine hours a week in dance classes at Jami Masters School of Dance.  Jeanna has been taking classes for 14 years.

“The Charlotte Catholic Dance team is a lot of fun,” said Jeanna. “Getting to dance in front of 3,500 people is my favorite part of being on the team.”

As a youngster Jeanna remembers attending Cougar football games and focusing on the dance team.  She began to tell her family and friends that one day she would be a part of the team.

“I can remember running down to the football field and having the dancers give me their autograph, I thought it was the neatest thing.  Now I am a dancer and little girls come up to me at the games and ask me for my autograph.”

Jeanna is the oldest of five sisters and comes from a family of dancers. Her younger sister Kate is a freshman on the dance team.

Freshman Anna Beaman credits her position on the team with helping her adjustment to high school.

“This summer was really fun for me.  Getting to meet all the upperclassman before school started really made being a freshman easier.”

Katie Maslanka is also senior Co-Captain and has been a member of the team for all four years at Charlotte Catholic. 

Katie’s favorite memory with the dance team is ‘the excitement of dancing every weekend in front of Charlotte Catholic fans’.

Senior Carson Michalski credits much of the success of the dance team to Coach Schexnayder.

“Coach is very easy going and supportive to all of us. She is very organized and works hard to make the team the best it can be.”

These young ladies are a very tight knit group with a focus on improving every week.  One unique aspect of the team is the game day dinners they share.  The team will gather for dinner before every game to socialize and begin to prepare for that evening’s game.

These young ladies are a very important part of the Charlotte Catholic athletic family.  They dance behind a two-time state champion football team and provide quality family entertainment to some of the most supportive high school fans in the state.

TEAM ROSTER