Meet the 2011-12 Pioneer Press Colorado Eagles Chicks!

We'd like to congratulate and welcome the 2011-12 edition of the Pioneer Press Colorado Eagles Chicks! Tryouts were held yesterday, and the following 11 ladies were selected to represent the Eagles in the community and at the Budweiser Events Center.



Back Row: Amanda, Alysia, Kerry Anne, Emily R., Kayla, Emily M.
Front Row: Whitney, Meghan, Amy, Ashlee, Kathryne
Not Pictured: Erica Koehler (Manager)

Cheering on the men on ice at Budweiser Events Center

Eagles Chicks host Loveland tryouts, hire 11 dancers for upcoming season
By Madeline Novey Reporter-Herald Staff Writer



Come October, the Colorado Eagles hockey team hits the ice for the start of another season. When it does, its players will have 11 new greatest fans.

The Eagles Chicks, the team's cheerleading squad, hosted tryouts Sunday at an ice-free and eerily quiet Budweiser Events Center.

And though the name was the same, Budweiser felt different for some of the more than 20 women who turned out.

"It's weird to see the stands so empty today," said 20-year-old Alysia Kamarath. "The fans make it worthwhile."

The junior Colorado State University communications major bore the title of Eagles Chick last season and was back for another go.

Also a former Eagle Chick looking to return, University of Colorado's Kerry Anne Keogh stood near Kamarath during one of several brief breaks throughout the hours-long tryouts. At 5-foot-10, Keogh played lacrosse, basketball and volleyball in high school.

She then got into dance, thanks to her friends.

In her experience dancing for other sports teams, fans were abrasive; they yelled inappropriate things, she said. But that's not the case with the Eagles.

"We just have the best fans," she said. "I've always felt so welcomed in this building."

As part of tryouts, the women -- ages 18 to 24 -- learned two dances and interviewed with a panel of judges.

In any one season, they learn one or two dance routines a week. That's upward of 30 per season, said former Eagles Chick and team choreographer Alyssa Pohm (or Stanton, after she marries on Saturday).

"It is intense," she said, as 16 dancers -- down from 23 after first-round elimination -- practiced steps over and over again to The Black Eyed Peas' "Don't Stop the Party." What makes it more difficult is that many of the dances will go into what Pohm called "the vault," or memory, for possible future use.

"You learn it, perfect it, and you're done," she said.

Rumors the Eagles would move to the East Coast Hockey League came true in May when head coach and general manager Chris Stewart announced the team would play as an ECHL expansion franchise for the 2011-12 season.

As a result, the team's schedule ramped up and puts the players on ice at home at the Budweiser Events Center more than 30 times, starting in October. The dancers do not travel with the team when it skates elsewhere.

Pohm said the team's increasing success has definitely attracted more talent to and interest in the dance squad.

"I hope to just keep that forward momentum, in terms of rigor and commitment of the team members," said Erica Koehler, the Eagles Chicks new dance manager. A member of the team a few years back, Koehler takes the place of Lisa Kennedy.

"You have something to live up to," she told the dancers sitting on the bleachers before the start of tryouts.

Eagles Chicks selections:
Alysia Kamarath
Amanda Bennett
Ashley Cowan
Amy Menhennett
Emily Maginnis
Emily Ryon
Kayla Christian
Kathryne Richmond
Kerry Anne Keogh
Meghan Daly
Whitney Sarbaugh

Kayla Christian, 19, studies sport exercise science at the University of Northern Colorado and loves the energy of a big athletic event. And hockey, she said, brings something special to the table.

"It's just such a raw sport to watch," Christian said, taking a break before the second performance set.

A sophomore, Christian would like to pursue a short career in professional dance for sports teams, but plans to work as a physical therapist for professional athletes.

Until then, she's focused on supporting a team she loves.

"I call myself an Eagles fan, of course!" she said, laughing. Then she descended the bleacher stairs on the center's south side and joined her colleagues for another tryout performance.

Wild Bunch Auditions Date Update

Preliminaries: Friday September 30, 2011

Semi-finals: Saturday, October 1, 2011

Finalists’ Training Camp: October 3rd and 5th; (7-9:30pm)

2011 Preliminaries and Semi-finals will be held at Pepsi Center in downtown Denver. Click below for more information. Training camp will be held at the Wild Bunch practice facility in Downtown Denver.

Audition Details »

Prep Class Information and Registration »

Denver Broncos Cheerleaders set hearts racing

Broncos Cheerleaders Calendar release heats up the track
August 19, 2011
Credit: Laura Kelley



The Denver Broncos cheerleaders traded in their pom poms for racing helmets Friday night as they kicked off their 2012 Calendar Release with a little friendly competition.

The lovely ladies met up with their fans at The Track at Centennial for a little go-kart racing. Hundreds of people showed up to the event, which raised money for the Keeping Kids on Track Program. Money raised goes to help at-risk youth who are members of the Tennyson Center for Children and The Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Denver.

Before gearing up to hit the track, the beauties spent some time with their fans putting their Jane Hancocks on that steamy 2012 calendar (and yes, we even snagged one to put up in our Metromix office because You know, for the kids). Overall, it was a successful night with the ladies giving the pros a run for their money on the track (if you think these girls can throw a mean high kick on the field you should see them going 60 mph around the track).

If you missed the event, you didn’t miss out on the new calendar. Just head over to the Broncos Cheerleaders website to order a copy and to find out more about each and every one of the of the ladies giving the Broncos their spirit this season. — Laura Kelley, special to Metromix

RMRG Pep Squad Auditions

Miss auditions? Still interested in cheering on the RMRG? Don't worry. We are still accepting new dancers for one more week. Email sarah.kaplan64@yahoo.com for more information or just show up at Bally Total Fitness at 7635 W 88th Ave in Arvada at 7:30 next Wednesday.

Like to cheer? Dance? Love RMRG? The RMRG Pep Squad RMRG is holding auditions on August 10 from 7:30 to 9:30pm at Bally Total Fitness at 7635 W 88th Ave. in Arvada. Anyone interested can email sarah.kaplan64@yahoo.com for more information!