Friday Night Lights Feature - Sabine High School

Hello Texas Twirl Fans!

Happy last week of October! How are we already here? The football season is winding down, and the competition season is about to start. Just a few more twirlers left to feature, including this wonderful team!

Each season this blog likes to get to know many of our awesome Texas twirlers a little better by learning about their experiences. We will be meeting many High School twirlers throughout the season with the Friday Night Lights Features and discovering more about our Texas Collegians with the Collegiate Twirler Spotlights. We will also be having many of our High School and Collegiate twirlers take over our Social Media Story for their Game Days! Make sure to follow us on Instagram @twirlingiscatchingtx or at facebook.com/twirlingiscatchingtx so you don't miss a thing!

Our next Friday Night Lights Feature is the Sabine High School Twirlers!

Sabine High School, while being in an unincorporated area, has its address as Gladewater, Texas, and is the home of the Cardinals. It is also the home of the Sabine Majorettes! This great group of ten twirlers, led by coach Blair Maxwell, performs with the Sabine marching band as both instrumentalists in their military style shows, and as twirlers each game day. We are so excited to learn more about Brooklyn Maxwell (Head Twirler), Haileigh Garrett, Anna Tryon, Ro McKnight, Chloe Stephens, Kenzi Levingston, Mikaela Haufler, Brylee Parker, and Susie Miller.

SHS, while being a smaller school (3A), is very successful in both extracurriculars and academics, including being a 4-time Academic State Champion! But it is the spirit that really makes the most impact. “Our favorite thing about school is that everyone is so involved in everything, and we have a lot of school spirit.”

With that much school spirit, the traditions must be the best! “We have so many great traditions, but one of the funniest is that our band's mascot, Craig the Traffic Cone, comes with us to every competition, football game, and concert! On a more school wide level, Homecoming is also super fun. We always have a homecoming parade where all of the school/community organizations create floats as we march down the streets of Liberty City! The week is filled with dress up days, parades, a dance, and of course the football game itself! The whole town shows up to the football game to support our team! Go Cards!”

Spending so much time together, they must have a lot of great inside jokes. “Every game during 4th quarter the band plays SC, a tune that is unique to our band. It always makes the crowd go wild! Also, anytime anyone says it's hot outside, it is tradition for the entire band to yell back at them: "It ain't hot!!!" Even if it's 110 degrees!”

Finally, besides Homecoming, we asked what they are looking forward to move this season, and they told us about a really cool tradition they have called Honor America Night. “Honor America night is hosted by the band for all veterans and the community at the stadium. We have different groups from the school perform like the band, majorettes, strutters (dance line), singing sensations (elementary choir), etc.  We honor each branch of the military. A large firework show is at the end of the night.  Everyone gets to enjoy a traditional American meal: hotdogs, chips, and a drink.” Anyone else start hearing Stars and Stripes Forever while reading that too? What an amazing tradition!

Now that we have learned more about Sabine, let’s learn more about the twirlers! 

Brooklyn Maxwell, Senior
Head Twirler & Drum Major
Competition Level: Advanced
Brooklyn has been twirling for 16 years. The competition title she is the proudest of was when she won the 16 year old National Show Twirl at NBTA Nationals. Her favorite competition trick is back necks on the knees, and her favorite field trick is a toss double leap catch backcatch. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by former University of Tennessee Feature Twirler, Laney Puhalla. After High School, she hopes to attend a University and twirl there as the Feature Twirler. 

Haileigh Garrett, Senior
Competition Level: Beginner
Haileigh has been twirling for 7 years. She is coached by Blair Maxwell. Her favorite competition trick is a toss illusion and her favorite field trick is when they use knives. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by her best friend and teammate, Brooklyn Maxwell. After High School, she hopes to go to school to become a dermatologist. 

Anna Tryon, Junior
Competition Level: Beginner
Anna has been twirling for 2 years. She is coached by Blair Maxwell, Her favorite competition trick is a toss illusion, and her favorite field trick is a two turn. In baton twirling she has been most inspired by former Sabine twirler, Kenna Stutsman. “She graduated a few years ago and is now twirling at University of Arkansas!” After High School, she would like to twirl in college, possibly major in engineering, and then go to law school.

Skylar “Ro” McKnight, Junior
Competition Level: Beginner
Skylar has been twirling for 5 years and is coached by Blair Maxwell. The competition placement she is the proudest of was when she earned 2nd at her very first twirling contest! Her favorite competition trick is either 3 baton juggles or doing the splits & horizontal split fingers, and her favorite field trick is a toss double leap. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by her coach, Blair Maxwell. After High School she hopes to get her bachelors in ASL and be an interpreter. 

Chloe Stephens, Sophomore
Competition Level: Beginner
Chloe has been twirling for 4 years and is coached by Blair Maxwell. Her favorite competition trick is a two turn, and her favorite field trick is their roll series. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by her teammates, Brooklyn Maxwell. After High School she hopes to continue to twirl in college and pursue a career in cosmetology. 

Kenzi Levingston, Sophomore
Competition Level: Novice
Kenzi has been twirling for 10 years and is coached by Blair Maxwell. Her favorite field trick is a double knee, where you toss and the other baton goes under both knees. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by her teammates Brooklyn Maxwell and Haileigh Garrett. After high school she plans to go to college for philosophy. 

Mikaela Haufler, Sophomore
Competition Level: Novice
Mikaela has been twirling for five years. She is coached by Blair Maxwell. Her favorite competition trick is a loop series, and her favorite field trick is a roll series. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by her teammate, Brooklyn Maxwell. After High School she hopes to go to a college and major in spanish, learn ASL, and become a speech pathologist for elementary schools. 

Brylee Parker, Freshman
Competition Level: Novice
Brylee has been twirling for 3 years. She is coached by Blair Maxwell. Her favorite field trick is a reverse figure eight. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by her teammate, Brooklyn Maxwell. After high school she hopes to go to college and get a job. 

Kendall Delange, Freshman
Competition Level: Novice
Kendall has been twirling for 3 years. She is coached by Blair Maxwell. Her favorite field trick is a thumb toss. In baton twirling she has been most inspired by teammates Brooklyn Maxwell. After High School she hopes to attend vet school.

Susie Miller, Freshman
Competition Level: Novice
Susie has been twirling for five years, and she is coached by Blair Maxwell. Her favorite competition and field tricks are little joes. In baton twirling, she has been most inspired by her teammate, Brooklyn Maxwell. After High School, she hopes to go to vet school. 

Fun Facts!

• Favorite Color - Red (Brooklyn), Green (Haileigh, Kendall, & Susie), Orange (Anna), Light Purple (Ro), Pink! (Chloe), Dark Green (Kenzi), Periwinkle (Makaela), Red & Black (Brylee)
• Favorite Movie or TV Show - “F.R.I.E.N.D.S.” (Brooklyn), “The Sound of Music” (Anna),  “Switched at Birth” or “Suits” (Ro), “Gravity Falls” (Chloe), “Supernatural” (Kenzi), “Camp Harlow” or “Jane Eyre” (Mikaela), “The Hunger Games” (Brylee), “Batman” (Kendall), “Grey’s Anatomy” (Susie)
• Favorite Book - “I love adventure books” (Brooklyn), “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” (Haileigh), “Percy Jackson” (Anna & Kendall), “Not If I Save You First” by Ally Carter (Ro), “Hunger Games” (Chloe, Brylee, & Susie), “Anything greek mythology” (Kenzi), “Jane Eyre” (Mikaela)

Must have drink/snack for Game Days…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “Dr. Pepper.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “Mountain Dew.”
• Anna Tryon - “Snickers bar and Dr. Pepper.”
• Ro McKnight - “White Red Bull.”
• Chloe Stephens - “Whataburger.”
• Kenzi Levingston - “Dr. Pepper and Nutella.”
• Mikaela Haufler - “Mexican lime soda.”
• Brylee Parker - “Takis, green tea, and coke.”
• Kendall - “M&Ms.”
• Susie Miller - “Alani and pretzels.”

Favorite Quote…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “Progress, not perfection.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “Little things do end, but it's never the end of everything” & “Don’t do it until it’s right; do it until you can't get it wrong.”
• Anna Tryon - “The sky is not the limit when there are footprints on the moon.” - Paul Brandt
• Ro McKnight - From an old coach of mine - “Loyalty is a two-way street. Nothing is more important than trusting your team.”
• Chloe Stephens - “You only live once!”
• Kenzi Levingston - “If they wanted to, they would.”
• Mikaela Haufler - “When she speaks her words are wise and she gives instruction with kindness.” Proverbs 31:26
• Brylee Parker - “Stay strong in hard times. SMILE!”
• Susie Miller - “Don’t practice until you get it right. Practice till you can’t get it wrong.”

When they are not twirling, they love to…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “Train my mustang! It is my FFA project for my senior year.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “Read or play video games.”
• Anna Tryon - “Hang out with my family.”
• Ro McKnight - “Hang out with my friends and work.”
• Chloe Stephens - “Sleep!”
• Kenzi Levingston - “Work in the woodshop.”
• Mikaela Haufler - “Play basketball and throw discus.”
• Brylee Parker - “Play basketball, run, and music.”
• Kendall - “Sing.”
• Susie Miller - “I’m with FFA.”

Something people might not know about them is…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “At my first baton twirling competition I was wearing a diaper under my skirt.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “My favorite animal is a grizzly bear.”
• Anna Tryon - “I have been keeping chickens since 3rd grade. I have 15 now!”
• Ro McKnight - “I work at Whataburger, but I hate the color orange.”
• Chloe Stephens - “I find opossums cute! And I catch them in my yard when I can!”
• Kenzi Levingston - “My friends think I’m funny, but I disagree (I’m awkward).”
• Mikaela Haufler - “I volunteered at a kid’s church camp (Camp His Way) for 4.5 weeks this summer.”
• Brylee Parker - “I’m really funny and chill.”
• Kendall - “I have 6 siblings.”
• Susie Miller - “I’m always at the school.”

The best non twirling life skill they have learned from twirling is…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “Interview speaking.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “Communication.”
• Anna Tryon - “Consistency. If you are not consistent in your practice, you can't be mad if you get worse than what you expect.”
• Ro McKnight - “My flexibility and how I stretch. I am so much more flexible because of Majorettes.”
• Chloe Stephens - “Don’t beat yourself up when things aren't going too well.”
• Kenzi Levingston - “Knowing my left from right.”
• Mikaela Haufler - “Memorization.”
• Brylee Parker - “Being able to smile in bad timing or situations.”
• Kendall - “Straight arms.”
• Susie Miller - “Teamwork.”

Best advice from their coach…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “Don’t practice until you get it right. Do it until you can’t get it wrong.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “Don’t take it personal.”
• Anna Tryon - ‘Practice isn't something you do once you get good, but it's what makes you good.”
• Ro McKnight - “Even when you drop your baton, never drop the smile from your face.”
• Chloe Stephens - ‘Always keep your free hands clean and straight.”
• Kenzi Levingston - “Don’t be a follower, be a leader.”
• Mikaela Haufler - “Listen to all sides of the story.”
• Brylee Parker - “Don’t wear Crocs to practice, and ‘Don’t practice until you get it right, practice till you can’t get it wrong.”
• Susie Miller - “Don’t wear Crocs to practice.”

Best advice for future High School twirlers…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “Live in the moment. Time flies by way too fast.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “Point! Your! Toes!”
• Anna Tryon - “Keep working! Practice will make you the best that you can be.”
• Ro McKnight - “Stay smiling and rely on your teammates.”
• Chloe Stephens - “Don’t give up even when it is tough.”
• Kenzi Levingston - “Straight legs and elbows. Free hand!”
• Mikaela Haufler - “Just enjoy it!”
• Brylee Parker - “Don’t be late (aka 10 minutes before the end of practice).”
• Susie Miller - “Don’t forget your baton on the bus.”

Funniest/Most Fun memory as a twirler…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “During twirling practice, all of the twirlers came up to my best friend Haileigh and I and sprayed us with silly string since we were celebrating our birthdays.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “During my first try out, I hit myself in the forehead during a one turn.”
• Anna Tryon - “Dressing up with Chloe on dress up days. We always go over the top!”
• Ro McKnight - “The first two-turn I ever caught was after 30 minutes of non-stop two-turns. My teammate offered me a Dr Pepper if I caught the next one, and I caught the next one!”
• Chloe Stephens - “Getting hit in the head by Brooklyn!”
• Kenzi Levingston - “My coach. She is funny. You need to not take advice to heart and get your feelings hurt.”
• Mikaela Haufler - “Brooklyn wheezing in the front seat as her laugh. She sounds like a tea kettle!”
• Brylee Parker - “When Kenzi hit her elbow on a baton trick.”
• Kendall - “I broke my nose during a routine, and you can’t notice.”
• Susie Miller - “Brylee walking in 10 minutes before practice.”

Favorite thing about marching season…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “Dancing to the songs that the band plays so loud.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “Spending time with my girls and stand trash.”
• Anna Tryon - “Marching and twirling under the Friday Night Lights for the crowds.”
• Ro McKnight - “State!”
• Chloe Stephens - “Performing under the beautiful lights.”
• Kenzi Levingston - “Friday Nights!”
• Mikaela Haufler - “The family the band becomes.”
• Brylee Parker - “Counter marches.”
• Kendall - “Everything.”
• Susie Miller - “My section leader.”

What are they going to miss the most once marching season is over…

• Brooklyn Maxwell - “Twirling to songs that the band plays in front of our community and twirling with my friends.”
• Haileigh Garrett - “Friday night lights.”
• Anna Tryon - “Playing in the stands - the whole band makes sure to keep spirits up!”
• Ro McKnight - “Twirling at football games.”
• Chloe Stephens - “Hearing ‘One More Time!” when it is not the last time.”
• Kenzi Levingston - “Some of the people and the vibe.”
• Mikaela Haufler - “How close everyone was.”
• Brylee Parker - “The fun I had with learning the marches with my friends.”
• Kendall - “Everything.”
• Susie Miller - “Counter marches.”

We want to thank the Sabine Twirlers for sharing their Game Day with us, and we wish them a wonderful rest of their season together! Cherish every moment. Who are we? SC!

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.