For the 2013-14 De Soto High School school year, the Diamonds dance team have decided to hold re-tryouts. This will give those who did not initially hear about the spring auditions another chance to join the team.

“We thought re-tryouts would be a good idea because it is a new beginning and a fresh start for the team,” assistant coach Emily Allen said.

By adding new members to the team, the coaches believe that it will be beneficial during this current dance year and in the future. The coaches are confident that adding new members to the team will help build a bigger and stronger team.

“The team is already strong and they all have great relationships with one another, so I know adding more members to our team will just make it even stronger and I know the girls will be welcoming to the new members,” head coach Mackenzie Crow said.

The tryouts will consist of a 45-second jazz routine taught by the senior captains Morgan Riley and Mackenzie Mathern. In addition, those auditioning will be expected to complete a kick, leap and turn combination and demonstrate their ability to do the splits.

“The dance number that they are learning has difficult counts that go along with it. It definitely is not easy, but its at the level that we need potential new members to be at,” Mathern said.

Current team members support the idea of fall try-outs. By hosting re-tryouts, they believe that they will have a larger and stronger team.

“Gaining new members and making our team bigger will help us create bigger and better dynamics and also just better visuals overall,” Mathern said.

With a bigger team and better visuals, both senior captains are confident that the team will be successful in their upcoming competition season. However, they recognize the difficult road ahead of them.

“There will definitely be challenges and we have a lot of work to do, but if we can pull it together we are in for a great year,” Riley said.