Males take part in female-dominated sports
Cheerleading and dance are often thought of as female sports, but sophomores Joe Erickson and Charles Gageby would disagree.
Erickson is a member of the University of South Dakota cheer team, while Gageby is part of the USD dance team. They are both the only males on their respective teams, but both say it doesn’t bother them at all.
This might be Erickson’s first year cheering for the Coyotes, but being the only male on a cheer squad is nothing new to him, as he spent most of high school revving up the crowd at football and basketball games.
“At my high school, our crowd was what you’d call the ‘Sixth Man.’ We were always loud. It didn’t matter home or away. We were always there to support our team,” Erickson said. “I was always the one starting cheers and getting the crowd excited. So, that’s really where it all started.”
Erickson had originally tried out to be Charlie Coyote, but was convinced by a couple of cheerleaders and coaches to also try out for the cheer team. Erickson said he was uncertain at first but decided to go for it.
“I sat for awhile and really tried to decide what I wanted to do,” Erickson said. “But then I thought it would be something cool, something I’d be good at. So, I just took that chance and never looked back. And now it’s something that I really love.”
As for Gageby, he spent his entire life dancing. He began dancing at a young age, starting at Sarah’s Dance Studio in Pierre, where he danced for over 12 years. Then he moved up to Pierre Dance Academy, where he danced for an additional two years.
“I just really love dancing. It’s fun, and it’s a good way to relieve stress,” Gageby said. “My favorite part is when you do something cool and you get to see the audience’s faces. You get to entertain them, and entertaining people is always fun.”
Gageby became the first male dancer in the history of USD in 2011 and has been apart of the team ever since. However, he said he doesn’t see a difference in the team with a presence of a male dancer.
“It’s just a lot of fun to be around the girls that I dance with,” Gageby said. “We always have a lot of laughs, and it’s great to work together with them. It’s not really any different being a guy on the team. I just do my part and have fun with it.”
Erickson said he would have to agree with Gageby.
“I’ve always enjoyed being on the team. It’s a blast being around the girls. It doesn’t really bother me at all. You get the comments every now and then, but I know that I’m enjoying what I’m doing and that’s all that really matters,” Erickson said.
