The Warrior Dance Team won the state champion title at the Division IV TAPPS Dance competition held in Waco on January 13, 2024. The team received superior ratings for both their jazz and pom performances.
Ester Torres-Pinheiro and Allison Zaccari were selected First-Team All State in their division.
Congratulations to the team and coach for this amazing accomplishment!
On Saturday, January 14, the Warrior Dance team competed in the TAPPS State Dance competition for the first time, taking third place!
AWARDS:
- Division V Third place & Superior Rating
- Division V All-State 1st team – Ester Torres-Pinheiro & Allison Zaccari
- Division V All-State 2nd team – Jaclyn Millender & Kiran Harper
We are proud of you, Warriors!
Last week, the varsity cheer team hosted their annual Junior Pep Squad event for all elementary girls. This year, the Junior Pep Squad had 112 participants – our biggest number yet! Each grade level, from TK-fifth, had at least two varsity cheerleaders and two middle school cheerleaders to play games and teach them cheers and a dance.
On Friday, all of the participants performed at halftime at the varsity football game. The CCS cheer program is grateful for the fun-filled week with elementary girls and we are so proud of all their hard work!
Cypress Christian School is excited to announce new additions to our cheer program for the 2022-2023 season. Additionally, we are happy to announce our launch of the Warrior Dance Team! The cheer and dance programs will work together to form the Warrior Cheer & Dance Program as the premier spirit, serving organization to the entire athletic department! CCS parents, Morgan Groll and Jennifer Mestayer will lead the program with enthusiasm and a Christ-centered perspective, emphasizing excellence in cheer and dance and leading young ladies to be excellent leaders and Warriors for Christ.
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Morgan Groll, Head Varsity Cheer Coach
Morgan Groll moved to Houston, TX, in 2010 and attended CCS during her high school years, where she met her husband, Jason Groll. They have since had two children, Ella (six), a kindergartner at CCS, and Zachary (three). Over the past two years, Coach Groll has worked at CCS as a substitute teacher and most recently served as the Middle School Cheer Coach during the 2021-2022 season. Coach Groll will be continuing her work at CCS as our new Head Varsity Cheer Coach. She has spent her entire life in the cheerleading world, and she is excited to help build upon the foundation of the program she cherished as a cheerleader ten years ago. She began cheering on the football sidelines from ages five to ten, then she participated in competitive cheerleading for five years before her move to Texas, where she cheered for CCS during her junior and senior years. Since high school, Coach Groll has spent time choreographing for other schools and continuing her passion for athletics as a Cross-fitter and runner. After enjoying a successful year filled with growth and bonding with the middle school cheer team, she is looking forward to impacting varsity cheer!
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Jennifer Mestayer, Warrior Dance Team Director
Jennifer Mestayer is a native Texan with roots in both Beaumont and Austin. She and her husband Scott have lived in Cypress since 2004 after graduating from Texas State University. Jennifer has worked in the dance and drill team world since graduating from high school, where she was an instructor with ShowTime & ShowMakers Dance & Drill Team Camps. In college, Coach Mestayer studied psychology, dance, and business with the opportunity to be a part of the Strutter Dance Team and Delta Zeta Sorority. She has performed nationally and internationally during her college dance career and continued to work as a dance camp instructor each summer. After college, Coach Mestayer was privileged to work as a drill team director at Bryan High School and Cypress Creek High School. In 2006, she was given the opportunity to create and start the dance team at Cypress Woods High School. Coach Mestayer served as the Director of the Crimson Cadettes for seven years while also starting a family. In 2013, after the addition of Andrew, Dean and daughter Devyn, Coach Mestayer and Scott felt the Lord calling their family to step away from the world of drill team. Since 2015, she has worked as a realtor and will continue serving clients in the Northwest Houston area but is pleased to announce her new role at Cypress Christian School as the Warrior Dance Team Director. Jennifer is excited about this opportunity to build a program centered on serving as a spirit organization to CCS!
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Natalie Kirtley, Assistant Cheer Coach
Natalie Kirtley served as a part of the coaching staff at CCS from 2007-2012 as the Varsity Head Cheer Coach. She is married to Justin Kirtley (CCS Class of ‘04), and they have two daughters, Carlee (CCS fourth-grader) and Lyla (five). As head coach at CCS, she led the team to two victories at NCA (‘08) and Cheer Power (‘10), both in the small school division competition. She had the honor of coaching and sending off one of her cheerleaders to become the first NCAA Division I signee to The University of Oklahoma for cheer! She also had the privilege of mentoring and coaching Coach Groll. She knows Coach Groll’s talents and heart will help mold these girls into great cheerleaders and great leaders in our school.
Coach Kirtley was a competitive cheerleader in high school and later a tumbling instructor at a gym in Georgia. She recently rejoined the CCS coaching staff for the 2021-2022 season as the Pom Squad Coach for the basketball season. As the program grows, she is so excited to see the expansion of opportunities for our girls with cheer and dance! She will now become the assistant to the Warrior Dance & Cheer program. Coach Kirtley is excited to bring her heart and knowledge to the program. She will help these wonderful coaches create a dynamic spirit service organization.
Go, Warriors!
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