Panthers select 2012 TopCats

Congratulations to the 2012 TopCats! They are in for an exciting season and a world of memories.

And they just have to ask one of the original TopCats to learn the impact the experience can have on them. When I visited the TopCats last October, I met Janelle Rayford. She was a TopCat on the inaugural squad in 1996, and after cheering, she has been helping the TopCats every year on game days. Janelle told me, “The organization is just phenomenal, it was a great start for a great career for me. They teach you how to be professional. A lot of people think, ‘Oh, cheerleaders,’ but the Panthers run a class A organization.”

Janelle, who is a project manager who also dabbles in real estate, tried out as a whim originally. Janelle remembers, “It was like 400 girls, and I just went to have fun. (I thought), ‘I am not going to make it, look at all of these women!’ I had been with the Charlotte Rage, Arena Football, and I had fun with that, but that’s not (major league) professional. But I thought I will go and try out, my friends talked me into it. I said, ‘I am not going to make it, so we’ll just go here and have fun,’ and I kept making through the cuts. I’m thinking, ‘Well, wait a minute, I might have a chance.’ So I felt bad, the girl I drove with didn’t make it, so she had to wait for me all day.”

I asked Janelle if things for the TopCats had changed over the years, and she told me, “It has definitely changed. Our uniforms, we had the cat collar, one piece..” But does Janelle ever wish she was back out there dancing on the field? “Sometimes I do,” Janelle said, “When I see them out there, I think, ‘Ohh, I would love to put a uniform on and go back.”

For the new rookie TopCats, get ready for lots of high kicks, for in my humble opinion, the TopCats signature is the super high, explosure, outta nowhere high kick. I told Richelle Grant, TopCats Coordinator/Choreographer how impressive they are, and Richelle told me that during the routine when each TopCat is introduced to the fans at their first game, “It was so many kick lines in that routine, I was amazed at how they kept their stamina up. ”

So congratulations TopCats, you will definitely “get a kick out of” your upcoming season. (And observant Buffalo cheer guru Phil tells us, “Ashley W, the redhead on the right in the front row, spent 2008 and part of 2009 on the sidelines of Ralph Wilson Stadium as a Buffalo Jill.”)

Bryan Strickland/Senior Writer
Panthers.com

CHARLOTTE – For aspiring TopCats like Katy Plant, it’s a dream come true.

For veteran TopCats like Eiesha Williamson, the dream lives on.

Thirteen returners and 11 rookies have been selected to represent the Carolina Panthers as TopCats cheerleaders for the 2012 season after surviving a month-long tryout process that started with about 150 hopefuls.

“I’m so excited,” said Plant, who just graduated from Appalachian State University. “It definitely was tough. It challenges you mentally, physically and emotionally.

“But I have never felt so welcomed. It was an exhilarating experience and an amazing experience. I can already say I’ve made friends for a lifetime. It’s a little sisterhood, and I’m excited to be a part of it.”

While Plant didn’t know what to expect when she decided to try out, Williamson certainly did. Shelby Williams is only TopCat with more experience – she made it for the fifth time – but Williamson was first on the squad in 2005 before taking a break and now returning for a third consecutive season.

“You’re even more eager to try out as a veteran because you know what’s at stake, you know the excitement that’s going to take place in the year to come,” Williamson said. “At the same time, that brings more anxiety because you want it so bad.

“It also gets more difficult. The dancing improves every year, and there’s more physical training involved with auditions. When I came back in 2010, the expectations were higher. The squad just gets better every year.”

And making the squad gets tougher. Cheerleader choreographer/coordinator Richelle Grant said the 40 finalists were pushed harder than ever this year, having to learn three different routines from scratch on three consecutive nights before taking the weekend to prepare for the final audition.

“It was definitely the most challenging audition we’ve had from a learning and execution standpoint,” Grant said. “We have raised the bar each year. They handled it very well.”

Dancing ability is a big part of the equation, but it’s only a part of the puzzle when selecting the squad.

Williamson epitomizes the total person the TopCats covet. Already having earned undergraduate and master’s degrees, the Charlotte resident is on track to earn her Ph.D. in organizational management and business in 2013.

In the meantime, the business she founded in 2001 as a part of the Miss Virginia pageant, MADE Today Inc., now has four Charlotte locations teaching more than 300 girls cheerleading, dance and gymnastics.

“Education is huge to me,” Williamson said. “I believe I’ll technically be the first doctor TopCat.”

Plant is just starting on her journey, managing to participate in the protracted tryout process as she put the finishing touches on earning a degree in management. She is one of three recent Appalachian State dance team members to make this year’s TopCats squad, along with Maegan Eichinger and Katie Guthrie.

“When I went to my first Panthers game when I was eight years old, watching them dance really inspired me as a young girl,” Plant said. “Seeing the TopCats at such a young age helped give me the kind of passion I have, so I figured I’d go out on a limb and go after a childhood dream.”

2012 TOPCATS
Marissa A
Courtney A
Hailey A
Myra A
Whitney B
Jenny B
Laura B
Katie B
Lindsey B
Nayfe C
Laken C
Lauren D
Maegen E
Katie G
Kristy P
Shannon P
Katy P
Stacey S
Lauren T
Jeri W
Ashley W
Shelby W
Eiesha W
Lindsey Y

And for those of you, like me, who just CANNOT wait for NFL season, here are some photos of the TopCats from last October, including returning Eisha at this link.

http://procheerfans.smugmug.com/Sports/Carolina-Panthers-TopCats/23312790_rkDVkm#!i=1881548310&k=w8N49qP&lb=1&s=A