Long Beach City College will have virtual tryouts for cheerleaders, mascots, and dancers today. Students at LBCC are allowed to try out for any spot of their specific interest.
The LBCC cheer team currently has 21 cheerleaders, and the 21 cheerleaders were chosen last year on a virtual try out during the pandemic.
Last year there were over 50 applicants but according to the coaching staff they only decided to take 40 of the applicants.
The coaches mentioned the fact that practice was held on zoom all last year so it was harder to transition and some of the applicants had fizzled out during the time.
There are a few coaching staff members at LBCC for the cheer and dance team, Head Coach Diana Galias, Assistant Coach Ronaldo Vicencio, and Coach David Shaw.
Today, there will be 30 new applicants trying out virtually on zoom to try to clinch a spot to get their name on the roster for the cheer team.
Starting on June 15, the cheer team is clear to start conditioning and practicing in person, and the team will start meeting face to face on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Diana Galias, advisor head coach of LBCC cheerleading team for 24 years said, “The athletes have to go through an ATS clearance with the trainers. There are tests they have to take and pass, videos they have to watch and 5-7 pages worth of paperwork which include medical clearances, COVID clearances, random COVID testings and much more. It is very challenging but the important thing is athletes are able to get back to enjoying what they love to do, which is cheer.”
The cheer and dance team are both separate, Galias explained the fact that when athletes go to competition to compete they should know how to do both cheering and dancing and be fluent in both areas.
LBCC is considered to be one of the top community colleges with the best cheerleading program on the west coast.
As far as the National Championships go, during the years of 2005 and 2013 LBCC has been very competitive and talented on a national and nationwide level for the past ten years. The cheer team repeated the legacy by winning again during the 2018 National Championship and 2019 State Championship.
According to Coach Galias, the LBCC cheer team won second place in the large co-ed show cheer division at the United Spirit Association USA Collegiate College Championships at the Anaheim Convention Center last year in 2020 during the month of February.
The cheer team has been associated in some movies just to name a few; “Bring It On Yet Again, Hot Chick,” and recently on a show called, “Goliath and Dating No Filter.”
Galias mentioned and talked about all of the championship banners at the LAC campus inside of the Q building, and a lot of students who were athletes for the LBCC cheer team.
Many of the LBCC cheerleaders are now professional choreographers, work and help youth in many cheer studios, and some even went on to cheer at universities and the all-star levels.
Assistant Coach of LBCC Ronaldo Vicencio said, “We are excited to get back to work this year and see what more success it brings to our college, we are extremely happy to add new talent to the team.
”For more information about cheerleading and dance or if your just interested in trying out for cheer email here: LongBeachVikes@Gmail.com