Collegiate Twirler Spotlight - Angelo State University Feature Twirler

Hello Texas Twirl Fans!

As September comes to a close, we celebrate a great first month of Collegiate football, and of course, Collegiate Twirlers! We hope you enjoyed learning more about this week’s Collegiate Twirler Spotlight as she shared what her Game Day is like in Ram Nation. 

This week’s Spotlight is the Angelo State University Feature Twirler, Katy Herber!

Angelo State University is located in San Angelo, Texas, and is the home of the Rams. It is also the home of a great spirit community that is very supportive of their twirlers. This year, the ASU Band gets to highlight their Feature Twirler, Katy Herber!

We asked Katy what brought her to ASU, and she said it had everything she needed. “I chose Angelo State because of the size and location of the school. Angelo State, and even San Angelo in general, is big enough to have everything you need, but small enough where you don’t feel overwhelmed by crowds. I came down for a game my junior year of high school and I just fell in love with the atmosphere of the university, and I was pretty much sold from that point on. 

Katy also told us that staying in Texas and close to home was important to her. I also have always dreamt of living in west Texas, and I knew I just had to come out here. I wanted to go out west to start a new adventure in my life, but I still wanted to stay close to my family. I go home about once a month to see my family as well as my extended family and they always come down to the football games to watch me twirl.”

After choosing to attend ASU, it was perfect that Katy was able continue her twirling career there as well. We asked Katy what the audition was like, and she said it was a super simple process. “I submitted a video compilation and a letter of interest. Since I auditioned during Covid-19, I got an email that the spot was mine, and will be until I graduate, so the rest was history.” We also wanted to know if there is any scholarship associated with the position and she told us “Yes. I get a 600 dollar scholarship every semester I twirl!”

Angelo State has been a great place for Katy, and just the right fit. “I absolutely love the size of my school. It is big enough to offer lots of different programs and opportunities, but it’s small enough where I get a quality one-on-one education. I’m able to contact my professors regularly and they always make sure you will succeed. It also has a very welcoming community. The band, the faculty, and even the fans are some of the most supportive people ever. The number of compliments I get flooded with at games and even at competitions from people who have ties to the Concho Valley is immeasurable, and I’m super grateful for the most supportive university ever.”

Don’t let ASU not being a huge school make you think they don’t have huge school spirit! We asked Katy about her favorite school tradition, and she said it had to be Ram Jam. “It’s basically a giant tailgate party before the game with great food and great music.”

Katy Herber
Katy is a sophomore from Pflugerville, Texas, and she is a Geoscience major with a minor in Mathematics. She has been twirling for 16 years and is coached by Lynn Dell Harrell for individual events and Lori Perkins of the Dixie Diamonds for team. In addition to being the ASU Feature Twirler, she is also the secretary for Women in Physics organization. The competition placement she is the proudest of was earning the Silver Medal for the 2022 Senior AA US Pre-Trials. Katy’s favorite competition trick is an illusion floor roll, and her favorite field trick is anything three baton. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by Adaline Bebo. “She has accomplished a lot and has been on a journey with her life that hasn’t been the easiest, but I admire her perseverance and determination.” After completing her school at ASU, she hopes to attend graduate school at Texas A&M, pursuing a degree in Meteorology. “I want to work as a storm chaser or work at an agency like the National Weather Service, NOAA, or NASA as a weather researcher or forecaster.”

Fun Facts! 
Favorite Color – Light Blue
Favorite TV Show – “Numb3rs”
Favorite Book – “Red Queen” by Victoria Aveyard
Favorite Food Item – Mini Nilla Wafers

Favorite Quote… 
“What shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” Romans 8:31

When she is not twirling, she loves to… 
“Go to concerts of Texas red dirt country music artists.”

Something most people might not know about her is... 
“I have perfect pitch and I love to write music.”

The best non-twirling life skill they have gained from baton twirling is…
“I have learned the importance of consistency. You need to consistently practice reaching your
goals. I have been able to apply it to learning things like math or a new language, and to reach
my goal of fluency in that subject, you must practice applying it every day to move forward.”

Most memorable advice from her Coach…
“Breathe, especially before and during every performance.”

Advice to Future Twirlers…
“Stick with it and keep going. It may get rough some days, you may want to quit somedays, but the rough patch will pass, and you will always keep continuing to grow as you stick with the sport.”

Favorite Memory as a Baton Twirler…
“Catching my first double illusion!”

Funniest Memory as a Baton Twirler…
 “Juggling for the student section before halftime and watching all the fans lose their minds.”

What advice would you give to a twirler about to go into college auditions?
"Always have a smile on your face. Smiling will help boost your confidence."

Favorite Tradition within the ASU Band program…
“We always finish rehearsal with our band director, Dr. Alvis, shouting “Ram Band on 3. 1, 2, 3”
and we all scream “Ram Band” at the top of our lungs.”

Something she is really looking forward to this season…
“I am looking forward to hopefully making playoffs this year!”

We enjoyed sharing Game Day with Katy, and we hope she has an amazing rest of the year. We will all be cheering on the ASU Rams in hopes they move on to Play Offs! Go Rams!
 

 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.