By John Royal
Houston Press
Mar. 18 2011

The Houston Aeros have ten games remaining in the regular season. As of today, they are one point out of first place. However, they’re just five points out of fifth place, and finishing in fifth could mean they miss out on the playoffs. There’s also the possibility that they could finish all of the way down in seventh place, so close are the teams in the AHL’s West Division grouped together.

The Aeros play their cross-state rival San Antonio Rampage twice this weekend — Saturday here at Toyota Center and Sunday in San Antonio. The Rampage are in sixth place, but they’re just six points behind the Aeros. So it really is key that the Aeros find a way to win these games so that they can start to get some distance and breathing room between themselves and those teams below them.

Helping to cheer on the team and fire up the crowd this weekend will be the Aerodynamics, the Aeros cheerleading squad. And if you watch the Dynamics, like any good male should, you’ll notice something just a little strange. Sure they’re wearing the tight cheerleading clothing. Sure they’re waving pom-poms in the sky. But if you look closely, you’ll notice something else: The squad has two sets of twins, or as I call them, twin twins.

I talked to one set of the twins, Kristen and Kirsten, before last Sunday’s 6-3 win over Manitoba. And I talked to them before the game as they were doing something that I’ve never seen the Texans cheerleaders or the Rockets’ Power Dancers do, and that was they were all lined up at the entrances to Toyota Center, greeting the fans as they entered. And this wasn’t just a one-time thing, the Aerodynamics do this before every game.

Kristen and Kirsten are in their second year as Aerodynamics, and I was comforted by the fact that while I couldn’t tell them apart — they’re identical twins, after all – neither could their teammates. But the two young ladies found that to be funny.

They said they became cheerleaders for the Aeros because they love hockey, mentioning the fast pace, aggressive action and the hard hitting as the reason why they’re such fans. However, if you’ve watched the Aerodynamics during a game, you have noticed that they’re never in one spot for too long as they’re constantly roaming the stands for giveaways and contests, or they’re out on the ice between periods doing routines or assisting with more contests.

“We see a lot,” Kristen said. “We go downstairs usually at the five-minute mark before intermission, so we see about 45 minutes of the game.”
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The Aerodynamics do spend a lot of time in the stands, interacting with the fans, which, once again, is not something I’ve seen the other squads for Houston teams do. And the ladies say they never have any problems with the fans, not even with some who might have had a bit too much alcohol. Kristen said the only problem she’s ever had in the stands is when she misses a step running or down the aisle.

During their free time, Kristen and Kirsten are students at the University of Houston, and both are assistant teachers, Kristen working with preschool ages and Kirsten working with elementary kids — you’re going to have to find the schools out on your own. But becoming teachers is something they would both like to do after graduation.

“I love children, and I just want to stay in education,” Kirsten said.

And any time that they’re not at school, or working, or at games, they’re still handling Aeros duties.

“We have two practices a week, but it’s really a nonstop thing,” Kristen said. “You have to continuously work out, continuously practice at home just to keep your body in shape and your mind focused on the routines, and everything. It’s really a non-stop job.”

And when they’re not practicing, they’re doing charity work associated with the team. The Aerodynamics are involved in charitable activities for Fanatical Change and St. Jude’s.

This is an important weekend for the Aeros — it seems like every weekend is an important weekend for this team — and doing their best to help out the team will be Kristen and Kirsten and the rest of the Aerodynamics squad. So say hi when you walk into Toyota Center, and always make sure the aisle is clear before you head up to concessions so that you don’t run into one of the young ladies while she’s throwing out free T-shirts or playing air guitar for the air guitar contest.

By Lourdes Vazquez
The Victoria Advocate

As a 6- year-old, Victoria native Schuyler Warnell cried before dance class.

Now she and her twin, Dresdynn Warnell are part of the 2010 Houston Texans Cheerleaders squad.

“They took after their momma, I have a lot of rhythm,” joked their mother Delores Warnell-Fillmore.

The two University of Houston freshman laugh, but thanked their mom for enrolling them in dance at a young age.

“It has helped with time management and not being shy,” said Dresdynn, 18.

The two were initially involved in softball beginning at age 3, then added track and gymnastics.

Upon entering middle school Warnell-Fillmore asked her daughters what they would like to focus on and they decided on dance.

“The girls really liked track, but they loved dancing,” said Warnell-Fillmore, who initially thought her daughters would pursue track.

“It was a whole other extreme that we liked,” said Dresdynn.

The two began competing in dance, becoming officers on the Memorial High School’s drill team.

“We wanted to be officers and decided that’s what we really wanted to focus on,” said Schuyler, who was a major of the drill team.

Their mother recalls telling her daughters they could accomplish anything.

“I wanted to do this for so long,” said Dresdynn of becoming a Texans cheerleader.

The two began preparing for auditions in February by attending workshops.

“I’m really glad we have been dancing as long as we have,” said Schuyler, who found being a technically-trained dancer an advantage.

The two were told the Texans were looking for a twin set for this year’s squad.

It was a packaged deal, said Dresdynn.

Warnell-Fillmore awaited to find out if her daughters would become Texans cheerleaders on April 27.

“I was a nervous wreck,” their mother said.

At 7:02 p.m. the first text message was received “congratulations.”

“They were live streaming it, but I couldn’t watch,” said Warnell-Fillmore, who decided to wait for her daughters’ phone call.

The college freshmen Schuyler and Dresdynn made the squad.

“We always knew we wanted to be part of some sort of NFL or basketball dance team,” said Schuyler.

The two sisters will continue to pursue their education while being Texans cheerleaders.

“We’re going to have to manage our time wisely and study when we can,” said Schuyler, a speech pathology major and dance minor.

The two will also take summer courses and make appearances during the summer before the first game.

“We’re going to take one class each session,” said Dresdynn, of taking summer courses.

Warnell-Fillmore said she plans to attend as many games as she can.

“August is the first game, I’m definitely going to go to games they perform at,” said Warnell-Fillmore.

Both 18-year-olds are excited and anticipate traveling.

But they receive one frequent question – “Can you get us tickets?” said Dresdynn.

From KRISTV.com:

Larisa and Marisa Coy know what it’s like to be a student in Baytown schools. Now they’re learning what it’s like in the front of the classroom.

Growing up in Baytown, they attended Crockett Elementary, Baytown Junior and Sterling High School. After high school, they attended Lee College before transferring to the University of Houston for a degree in education.

After graduating in 2008, they are now in their second semesters as sixth-grade math teachers for the Goose Creek school district. Larisa teaches at Horace Mann Junior High while her sister, Marisa, teaches at Highlands Junior High.

“Our ultimate goal is to earn our master’s in school administration,” Larisa said.

As it is, the Coy sisters are probably Baytown’s best known beginning educators. Even if they’re best known, so far, for what they do down the road at Houston’s Reliant Stadium.

Larisa and Marisa have a second job as NFL Cheerleaders for the Houston Texans. But while they cheer on Sundays, their eyes are never far from the prize.

Education has always been a major priority for the twins, whose mom, Maria, was a math teacher herself.

“Growing up, she never forced it on us or told us what to do,” Larisa said. “But it was always on both our minds.” Marisa said, “We wanted a career we’d love and realized that teaching would be exactly that.”

The recent graduates say they can relate to their students.

Larisa said: “We both feel we can use the opportunities to tell them to go for their dreams and I want to share that with all of my students.”

Marisa added: “We were in junior high once, so we know the trials and what it takes,” she said. “Even though you’re in middle school, you can accomplish your goals if you work hard at it.”

Their football notoriety hasn’t escaped their students.

“Most of the students already know, but others, when they first find out, they’re generally surprised,” Marisa said. “One of my students said ‘I’ve seen you before,’ so I had to tell him where he saw me.”

Hands-on experience pushed the women to their vocation.

While in college, Marisa helped tutor ninth-grade algebra. That’s when she realized she wanted to pursue teaching.

“I think it helped to see students move on. I went to graduation and saw seniors I tutored graduate. That feels very rewarding,” she said.

Larisa said: “One student came to me and showed me his report card and he said ‘I got an “A” in math because of you, Miss Coy. I’ve never been good at math.’ That’s when I realized I had made a difference and I definitely wanted to teach.”

The two draw on their experiences as students.

“When I was in school, math wasn’t fun,” Marisa said. “I’d change problems to make it fun. I try to add real life scenarios.” Larisa said, “I tell my students at the beginning that they will know math, appreciate it and have fun with it. We do activities and journals together.”

Away from the classroom, the sisters are in their fifth year as cheerleaders for the Texans.

“We had just finished at Lee College and were going to transfer to UT and had done some dancing for the Houston Aeros when a friend told us we should come to try outs for Texans cheerleaders,” Larisa said.

Marisa said her parents agreed.

“Our parents told us we might as well go for it because otherwise we would be wondering what could have been,” she said. “We didn’t know what to expect, we just tried to stay positive the whole time.”

Staying positive wasn’t exactly easy and the competitions just kept getting harder.

“Our first year,” Marisa said, “we had just turned 20 and there were 900 girls. The field was covered with girls, it was overwhelming.”

The squad of 900 was eventually cut to 35, where it remained for their first four years. Now it’s at 29.

Cheerleading itself is almost a full-time job. They practice about three times a week for about four hours. They are also required to make at least 40 appearances a year, which they always surpass.

On game day, they arrive at Reliant Stadium at 7 a.m., long before the players.

“We get there early to warm up, work on our routine and before you know it, it’s time to start,” Marisa said. “It goes by so fast.”

During their childhood, Larisa and Marisa competed in several dance and singing competitions. They say cheerleading fulfills their passion for dancing as they perform in front of 70,000 fans.

Cheerleading has allowed the twins to be on the big stage, but not just on Sunday afternoons.

In 2008, they were featured in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. Later that year, they were in the first-ever Houston Texans swimsuit calendar. They’ve also represented the Texans organization at Super Bowl XLI in Miami for “Beauties on the Beach,” where they competed in several competitions.

Currently, the two are featured on maxim.com in a feature titled “Ask a Texans Cheerleader.”

“We just think of ourselves as ordinary people and I still can’t believe all these things have happened.” Marisa said. Larisa said, “Since we first came in, every year has been better and better than the one before.”

If that’s the case, this should be a pretty good year as they help put Baytown on the map.

[Larisa and Marisa at HoustonTexans.com]

[Larisa and Marisa at SportsIllustrated.com]