Can you believe it is November? It feels like 2018, especially this fall, has flown by. We hope everyone enjoyed the Collegiate Twirler Weekend vidoes yesterday from the Baylor, Tarleton, UT, and SMU games. So much fun to see all our Collegiate Twirlers in action on Game Day!
To wrap up Collegiate Twirler Weekend, we have a new interview for you. This week our Collegiate Twirler Spotlight is the new Texas Tech University Feature Twirler, Abigail Morgan!
When it came time to look at colleges, Abigail (Abby) Morgan knew she wanted to go to a school with a rich twirling tradition, but that she also needed to find an opportunity to get a great education. She tells us, "TTU has several programs that allow a select group of students to have automatic admission to their medical school - which was my original plan until a few months ago. I am hoping a similar opportunity is presented when TTU opens their own dental school in 2021. The honors college at Tech also provides many opportunities and a lot of support to their students, which made TTU a great fit for me!"
In order to audition for the Texas Tech Feature Twirler position, Abby had to send in a video and application, and then attend a live audition. Once she was selected, she participated in summer band and assisting in creating her new routines. "I always get very excited about getting to be creative with every new show the Goin’ Band performs".
As a freshman just beginning in a well known feature position, there had to be a lot of work involved in getting on the field. We asked Abby what she has been doing to keep herself game day ready... "I have practiced a lot! I have found that when it comes to game days, my muscle memory already kicks in, just from a few weeks of practice, and all of my nerves and fears are subdued. To be prepared on game days, I have been finding inspiration from other twirlers and, per Bethany Tolley’s request, finding more of my inner sass for performances!"
With a couple months of leading the Band under her belt, we asked what she has enjoyed the most. Abby told us that entering the field for Game Day is the biggest rush she has ever had as a twirler. "At each football game, ZIT (our percussion section) and I are the first ones on the field for pregame. The adrenaline of being one of the only people on the field makes it my favorite twirling moment each game day!"
Now that we have learned a little more about what brought Abby to Tech, and what she loves the most about her choice, let's learn a little more about her!
Competition Level: Advanced
Abby is a Freshman Biochemistry Major on the Pre-Dental track. She is from Gonzales, Texas, and has been twirling for 8 years. She is a member of the Alamo City Strutters coached by Pat Montgomery, and is now getting additional instruction by Bethany Tolley, the Tech Twirling Coach. In competition she is the most proud of winning the 2018 Miss Majorette of Texas title. Her favorite competition trick is anything rolls, and her favorite field tricks are back necks and floor rolls.
Fun Facts!
Favorite Color - Red... "I know it’s cliché for someone attending Texas Tech but it is a power color!"
Favorite Movie - Avatar
Favorite Food - Enchiladas
Favorite Quote - "Dreams don't work unless you do!"
Twirler she has been most inspired by... "Former Gonzales High School Feature Twirler, Destiny Pierpont, is who inspired me to start twirling."
When she is not twirling she loves to... "Spend time with friends and relax".
Something people may not know about her is... "I am an only child".
Best advice from her coach... "Relax and breathe! You know what your doing. Now go do it!"
As a member of the Goin' Band from Raiderland, Abby gets to take part in many of the school and band traditions. So far, her favorite school tradition is throwing tortillas. "At kickoff, the student section chunks tortillas onto the field, which sometimes get dangerously close to hitting the twirlers!" Ay! You image trying not to get hit by a baton, but not a tortilla!
The thing she is most impressed with regarding the band program is how unified they are. "My favorite band tradition is that when our band travels, everyone goes. We fill eight charter buses, one van, and one 18 wheeler!" Wow! That is quite the caravan, but shows awesome school spirit.
Abby has also really enjoyed getting to be a part of the Texas Tech Twirlers. As the Feature Twirler, for many of her performances she is in the spotlight, but off the field she gets to spend time with the Texas Tech Twirling Line. These awesome ladies have made her feel at home, and she loves the fun times they have, especially during the games. "In the stands, the twirlers have little dances that go with the band’s stand tunes but when we feel like switching it up, we have a great time ad libbing! You never know what crazy dance moves are going to happen!"
After College Abby hopes to "attend dental school followed by a three year periodontal residency program to become a periodontist". She knows that the life skills she has earned from baton twirling will help her get there. We asked her what she has learned from baton twirling that she feels will benefit her the most in trying to reach her goals... "Definitely time management skills!! From having to balance school work, practice (competition and field), various extracurricular activities, and free time (because I fully believe that is necessary for sanity!) since the sixth grade, I have gotten pretty good at making time for everything!"
To wrap up the interview, we wanted to know what advice Abby would give to an up and coming feature twirler trying to decide where to go for college. She said, "Be open minded when considering colleges. You never know what amazing opportunity is awaiting you at a college you may have never contemplated."
We want to thank Abby for being this week's Collegiate Twirler Spotlight. We love seeing her on the Tech field and we look forward to many more awesome things from this great Twirler. Wreck Em!
We hope you have enjoyed this blog post. We are always looking for great new stories about Texas twirlers. Do you have an idea or some information we could use to help highlight our sport? Contact us at texastwirlcontact@gmail.com and we would love to hear more about it.
No comments:
Post a Comment