Lady Warriors Shine Under Saturday Night Lights
Lady Warriors Kirin, coordinator Tasa, Tonika, and Julie after a recent Warriors win
Sometimes, noticing a piece of paper posted to the wall can lead to an unexpected journey. About seven and a half years ago, Air Force medic Tasa Blackmon was at the gym on base, and noticed such a flier looking for semi-pro cheerleaders. As she read the posting, Tasa did not know anything about semi-pro football, and she had just given birth to her first child three months prior, but she still thought, “I will be able do that.” Tasa felt, “They probably won’t take me, but it will be fun to say I tried out.” Not only she make it, but this lead to Tasa to be responsible for dance squads every season since then. Currently, Tasa is in her third season as coordinator of the Lady Warriors, a squad that is part of the Ohio Valley Warrior game day experience in the Dayton area (their home field is in Bellbrook, Ohio). The Warriors are one of 24 teams in the Heartland Football League. With dedication, hard work, creative solutions, a feeling of being part of a big family, and, all the while, having as much fun as you’ll see on the sidelines, the Lady Warriors emphasize quality in everything they do.
Tasa is originally from Baton Rouge, and spent time in Germany, Japan, and all over the states because her dad was also in the Air Force. When Tasa, a cheerleader during junior high and high school years, first contacted the the semi-pro team from the flier, she soon realized the team wanted cheerleaders, but had no vision to what they should be. Often teams think they just need to put women on the sidelines in t-shirts, and their work is done. Tasa knew it was more, it had to be entertainment, and her vision soon lead her to being in charge of the first squad she was on. Tasa danced on the sidelines for the two first two seasons and then “put herself in retirement.” She says it was a challenge to separate dancer from coach, especially in the early years, when most of the dancers she recruited were friends. She was happy to stand aside and coach, and let others have the spotlight, even though she continues to be coerced by attempts to get her back on the sidelines.
Lady Warrior coordinator Tasa's husband is OLB Elvin (#5)
For Tasa, the family aspect of the bigger Warrior family starts at home; her husband Elvin is a starting outside linebacker. Nine years ago, Tasa and Elvin met on base as Air Force medics in Biloxi, and were married five months from the day they met (Tasa jokes she kept him around because he would not leave her alone). So, Elvin playing on the field while Tasa directs the sidelines has been a big part of their life every season since she saw the flier. Both Tasa and Elvin are on now the Board of the Warriors; Tasa as dance team coordinator and Elvin as defensive player representative. Both continue to serve in the Air Force; Tasa’s role now is to work in a counter-drug task force for youth, working with community based organizations that do drug prevention work.
Julie during the first quarter
Besides the semi-pro teams, Tasa also was director for an arena football dance squad, the Silverbabes for the Miami Valley Siverbacks. Try-outs were held, dancers selected, and all was set, but then financial issues hit the Silverbacks and they became a team without a home, and played all the season on the road. Tasa’s Silverbabes never made it to the sidelines, but she met Silverbabes choreographer Tonika through the process, and Tonika is in her second year as a Lady Warrior. This 2010 season for Tasa and the Lady Warriors has been another year of unpredictability, with the squad starting at six members, and ending the season at three. But Lady Warriors Kirin, Tonika, and Julie forged ahead, determined to finish the season with the indefatigable effort.
And if you think semi-pro football is your intramural friends taking off their velcro flags and throwing on helmets and pads, that is not how it is in football fanatical country like Ohio. Ohio is one of those states where football is elevated to another level of importance. On the high school level, Lady Warrior Kirin notes that in her home town, “Football was everything. On Football Fridays, the stores literally closed down in our town. By 5 o’clock, everything was closed down and everyone was in the parking lot tailgating. Definitely, football fever.” This high school fever leads to allegiances affecting whom one roots for in the future: Kirin roots for Indiana U. because Mitchell Evans from her high school plays for them, and Tonika roots for Notre Dame because David Bruton from her school played for the Irish and then Denver of the NFL.
So if you watch the Ohio Valley Warriors in their pre-game warm-ups, it looks pretty much like any NFL team. In fact, the roster of the Warriors semi-pro team lists 12 players at 300 pounds or more, including a 6 foot 9 inch, 395 pounder. And during the pre-game warm-ups, if you look over to the end zone, you will see the Lady Warriors rehearsing routines, with the look and choreography that you expect from a professional squad. With the seriousness that Ohio takes football, it is not surprising that you’d also find the Lady Warriors, with equivalent ambitions to be THE standard for semi-professional cheerleading.
Kirin performs during the first half
Tasa and the Lady Warriors are committed to maintaining high quality in a level of football without a lot of resources, so it is truly a labor of love. Fundraisers have been a consistent part of maintaining the necessary basics throughout the years. Every year they are part of a Bowl-a-thon along with the team, and also sell items such as pizza dough. At halftime, the Lady Warriors usually go into the stands and sell 50/50 raffle tickets, in which the Warrior franchise gets half the money and a charity will get the other half. In years past, the Warriors and Lady Warriors finances were completely separate, which Tasa was accustomed to from previous teams. The current Warrior leadership though treats the Lady Warriors as part of an entire franchise family, and has provided a helping hand for the dance squad.
Tasa has lofty goals and will not compromise her standards of quality. The Lady Warriors get their uniforms from a designer who makes them for pro dancers, and their boots from a supplier for NFL squads. She aspires to create a workshop type of environment where ladies who want to go pro, either to the NFL or NBA, can use this experience as a springboard; getting accustomed to the fan base and the standards that are in place, and then fit right in with a pro squad. Tasa utilizes a contact list of NFL and NBA directors, and picks their brains as much as she can about conditioning, practices, and expectations. But at the semi-pro level, a mission of preserving quality can limit the quantity of dancers on the sideline. Over the years, Tasa’s largest squad was 14, in her second year when she was still on the sidelines. For the smaller squads, with no alternates to step in, challenges arise. On a semi-pro football team, missing practices means being benched but not cut for the players; but if cheerleaders don’t have the proper commitment, then they have to be cut because it will be obvious on the sidelines that they are not ready.
So what motivates the Lady Warriors to be part of the squad? For Tonika, it is the love of dance. Once Tonika got into dancing, she knew it was something she wanted to continue doing as long as she can. Julie and Tonika are also in a contemporary/hip-hop dance crew. Kirin’s previous experience is being part of cheerleading squads in high school and at Wright State on the Division I level. All three Lady Warriors are from the local area: Kirin is a busy para-legal, Tonika teaches hip-hop, and Julie teaches dance and fitness classes. Being part of the squad means practices twice a week starting in February, and an extra practice during home game weeks.
Lady Warriors at midfield for their halftime routine
On the 17th of July, the Warriors hosted the Cincinnati Falcons. As the gates opened at 5, temperatures were still in the 90’s. As throughout much of the US, it has been a very humid summer for Dayton, and hot on game nights for the Warriors and the Lady Warriors. In was the second night in a row in the heat for the Lady Warriors, as they had participated in an Air Show parade the previous night. No open convertible riding for the Lady Warriors; especially with the guys walking, “If they are walking, we are walking.” Between registration and participation, they were on their feet for two and a half hours. The Lady Warriors walked the parade route with bags of candy to distribute to kids. Hot streets, no problem, as Kirin said, “It was definitely an honor for someone to reach out and ask the Lady Warriors to be part of it.”
No, she did not succumb to the heat, Kirin performs the halftime routine
Prior to the game, the Lady Warriors practiced for the game day activities. According to the squad, pre-game practice has been the toughest time as far as heat; by 7 o’clock it is bearable, but for pre-game practices at 5:30, it is has been the hottest part of the day. But again, they feel if players can deal with it in their black uniforms, the Lady Warriors can do their part. Their attitude is great, but the players can leave the field and look bedraggled and no one will care. Given the fact that many NFL squads soon will take the field in the heat, I asked the Lady Warriors if they had any advice for cheerleaders dealing with hot sidelines. They all chimed in with the same advice: Drink water all day long before the game, and make sure you eat something, even though there is a tendency to not want to eat before putting on the uniform. I asked about hair and make-up, and they suggested having a good base, don’t rub in the make-up, just pat it, and lots of hairspray.
The Lady Warriors return to the sidelines after their halftime routine
Kirin and Julie like summer as their favorite season, even though Julie thinks this year has been a bit too much on the hot side. Tonika prefers when summer turns to Fall, although part of it is because that is when her birthday will arrive. I asked what all of them have been doing to beat the heat in Dayton, and pools and the area’s lakes are their favorite relief.
Tasa visits the squad during halftime
Prior to the game, the Lady Warriors were excited that this would be their best halftime routine of the year. As the first half ended, Kirin, Tonika, and Julie went to midfield for their routine as both teams returned for the sidelines, many of the players pausing to watch. I think for the visiting Falcons, who were getting pummeled, watching the Lady Warriors excellent performance was the best part of the night. After returning to the sidelines, Kirin thought it went really well and was proud of how they performed with a small number of dancers. The routine had brought out some things that they had not done at all this season, like a kick that went right into the splits. Tasa’s husband Elvin walked over to Tasa and the dancers and said, “Hey I don’t want to to crash your area, but that might have been the best they looked all year.”
Although the idea of going to the pros appeals to the Lady Warriors, with bigger facilities and a brighter spotlight (Tonika was a finalist for the NBA Cavaliers in 2008), they are currently committed to making the Lady Warriors the best they can be. Certainly there are interesting contrasts to watching an NFL game. When the Lady Warriors took the field prior to the game, there were no pyrotechnics and thunderous music; instead they were carrying out their big, heavy ice cooler filled with their bottled water. After the Lady Warriors did their halftime routine, they did not go off to a cool locker room to freshen up, both they and the players stayed out on the field until the third quarter started. In addition, Tasa learned also right before the game that the usual booth crew that handles the music and sound effects would not be there that night, but luckily she had a CD of the music, so she ran the music from the booth. But it was one of those “surprises” that occurs at this level.
So, it is not the NFL. But how often in the NFL do you see a defensive star take time out to compliment the squad during a game, like Elvin did at halftime?! Plus the family atmosphere is so evident from the entire franchise. Players often leave the field and joke with the Lady Warriors about grabbing some poms and joining them on the sideline. Whereas in the NFL, you occasionally see players look up into the stands for their family and friends, Warrior players often walk over to the sidelines to talk to their kids.
Kirin and Tasa communicate during the game via cell phone
The Warriors ended up winning 63-0, with over 400 yards of rushing. The multiple touchdowns gave the Lady Warriors plenty of times to break out their post-TD routine, and they did a splendid job all game. As the game ended, the squad asked if they could take photos with the team because this was the last Lady Warrior regular season appearance. The players happily obliged, and also carried their ice cooler off the field.
Kirin, Tonika, and Julie are all lovely, talented dancers, whose labor of love and dedication is amazing. Tasa’s emphasis on quality and her vision are expressed by the great performance of the Lady Warriors. I thank them for their time, and for the multiple shout-outs to UltimateCheerleaders.com over the public address system!!
I asked the Lady Warriors what they would want to be part of this report, and their unified and overwhelming desire is for new dancers who are interested being part of the Lady Warriors to contact Tasa. They would love to find fellow dancers with desire and commitment to be part of the squad for 2011. Having more dancers allows for better formations and to be a bigger presence on the sidelines.
Tasa and the Lady Warriors: Thanks so much and congratulations on being a great squad!!
The Lady Warriors asked the players to be photographed with them after the game
Game's over, so Kirin, Julie, and Tonika are going to "split"
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Thank you soooo much for this post! The girls are all so pretty and it looked like they had a great time being cheerleaers! Keep up the Awesome work! 🙂