Keeping it peppy with Coach Krystal
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — Give me a K, (K).聽 Give an R, (R). Give me a Y, (Y). Give me an S (S). Give me a T (T). Give me an A, (A). Give me an L (L); what’s that spell KRYSTAL.
If this is what comes to mind you think of cheerleaders, well, let me introduce you to today’s cheerleaders.聽 They are every bit the athletes as the teams they lead cheers for.聽 They are gymnasts, dancers, and school leaders.聽 The boys and girls who cheer for our teams can rally the fans when the games aren’t going our way; they will lead the screaming fans who are rooting for the teams when they are meeting the challenge and crushing it, and they can inspire the players to push through to finish strong when the game is close.
And who leads these cheerleaders?聽 That is a great question.聽 Let me introduce you to Krystal Cooper; she has been the head coach at Northeastern State University for three years and TMS for six years. Krystal has been a competitive cheerleader with Extreme Cheer Company and a competitive cheer coach with Extreme Cheer Company and Twist and Shout. It was Adam Petty, a cheer coach at Extreme Cheer Company, who inspired her to coach.
Even though the teams she coaches are very different in ages and skill levels, there are many similarities. In the summer, both squads do workouts and practices. They also work on jumps, stunts, and game-day routines. After each competition, she will sit down with the respective team to go over videos. They discuss where they succeeded and where they could fix things.
Among all of her achievements, her proudest moment while coaching for NSU was winning a paid bid to NCA college nationals, and for TMS, it was performing at the OSU game and the crowd telling them how well they did.
When asked what she would like her legacy to be, she said, “I hope to leave knowing I made each athlete better individuals and that they know I loved them.” She believes every day is a new day! Whether it’s a practice or performance, you leave everything on the mat/grass.
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