Conference tournaments are about basketball but also so much more: the fans, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The CAA Tournament is taking place in Washington, DC this weekend and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD will be covering all of the angles so you can look forward to a cascade of coverage in the days ahead. Jon Teitel starts us off by chatting with Charleston cheerleading team captain Mackenzie Lowrie about winning the CAA tourney in 2018 and her predictions for the Cougars’ opening game vs. Delaware on Sunday.
You grew up in South Carolina: what made you choose Charleston? I grew up about 2 hours away from Charleston. It was always the place where my friends and I would visit on day trips, weekend trips, or sometimes for our spring break. There are so many fun things to do in Charleston that I always planned on attending The College. I was comfortable in this beautiful city and it is not too far from my family. I have enjoyed my time here so much and leaving will be very bittersweet.
How did you 1st get into cheerleading, and what is the best part? In middle school all of my friends were trying out so I did as well. I made the team during my 7th grade year and have been cheering ever since! I have grown to have so much love for this sport and would encourage anyone interested to give it a try. There are so many amazing parts to cheerleading but I would have to say that my favorite part is “stunting”, which is the part where we lift and toss athletes in the air. This is my favorite because you can be creative with it. As a team we are constantly learning new stunts and trying new things: it has such an adrenaline rush to it.
What is the atmosphere like on campus this week now that the conference tournament is just days away? The energy is high right now! We just hosted our last home basketball game and TD Arena was sold out. Students/faculty/staff are excited to see where our team can go from here. Since the College of Charleston does not have a football team, basketball is our main sport. The campus community gets really involved, which only makes the game day atmosphere that much more exciting. The tournament has been hosted in North Charleston over the past few years and has always been filled with Cougar fans. I am looking forward to seeing alumni and fans who make the trip up to DC to support the team.
You are captain of the team: what are some of the responsibilities involved in that? Being the captain is such an honor. I cannot thank our head coach (Samantha Pairet) enough for giving me this opportunity. Being captain means that I have to set a good example for the rest of my team. I have to be organized and am constantly trying to improve our team and encourage my teammates. Our program is smaller than most Division I colleges but we have seen so many talented athletes come our way during the past few years. It is great to see where this program can go and I am so grateful to be a part of the building process.
Will we see your group doing anything extra-special for the CAA Tournament this weekend? For the tournament we are only bringing 6 members of our team. This means these 6 are highly-skilled, talented athletes. We definitely plan on displaying these skills and hopefully bringing some new ones to the court so fans should keep an eye out to see what we have prepared for them!
How does your school decide who gets to go to DC, and what does it mean to you to see your group doing their thing in front of a national TV audience? The selection process to go on this trip is based on a few things: seniority, skill, and dedication. No single 1 of these things outweighs the other. This round we are bringing our 3 seniors, 1 junior, and 2 freshmen. The squad we are bringing to DC will represent this school so well and we are all so excited to travel together! Like any other sport it is an honor to be on national TV. We plan on bringing our best skills to the court and want to give the crowd another reason to make the trip to watch the Cougars.
What are your memories of beating Northeastern in OT to win the 2018 CAA Tournament and then heading to San Diego for the NCAA Tournament (where you only lost by 4 PTS to Auburn)? I was on the team 2 years ago for these monumental moments! In 2018 the CAA tournament was in North Charleston so our entire team was able to attend. That game against Northeastern was insane. Both the Cougars and the Huskies were very talented but we came out on top in OT. I cannot say I was surprised because that year the Cougars had an undefeated season at home in TD Arena, which gave us such good energy going into the CAA Tournament. We had a watch party in the arena with fans, spirit teams, and students on Selection Sunday to see where the team would traveling to for March Madness a few days later. When the reporters announced that CofC would be playing their first game in San Diego everyone went crazy! San Diego is such a fun city and it gave the team even more energy to travel with. Unfortunately, I did not get to travel to San Diego but as a freshman I was so excited for my fellow teammates who were able to go. Some friends and I got together for the game and had a watch party in Charleston. It was such a close game against Auburn. I was just proud of the Cougars because win or lose we played one heck of a season.
What do you think the role of a college cheerleader is today, and how has it changed over time? There are many roles that come along with being a cheerleader. Not only do you have to be a talented, dedicated athlete but you also must be a great leader, a good teammate, have great people skills, be motivated, and be able to make others happy. Being a cheerleader requires great talent but the talent never comes easy. It takes many hours of practicing/perfecting skills. Many people who are not wrapped up in the cheerleading world do not realize everything that goes into it. It is so much more than cheering on a sports team while standing on the sidelines. This is where I think cheerleading has really evolved over time. This sport was once just on the sidelines of sporting events but has quickly evolved into a competition. Teams, including The College of Charleston, now compete against one another to see whose skill level is elite. At all different levels of cheerleading, whether it be middle school/high school/collegiate/all-star, teams push themselves to limits they did not know existed the previous season. Being a cheerleader involves creativity and having a passion for the sport. There is not much recognition for cheerleading, therefore the athletes must have a passion that does not need recognition. We do this because we love it!
What has been your favorite moment so far this season: beating Providence in November, your 6-game winning streak in the middle of the season, Senior Night, other? My favorite moment from this season was from a game last week. On February 27th the Cougars hosted a game against Delaware. We had just come back from having 2 road games where we fell short each time. The energy in TD Arena was so high! Our men’s team feeds off of the crowd and the fans know that. The arena was not sold out but it sure felt like it was. Everyone was on their feet yelling the chants and getting involved with the game. It was so loud that the chants echoed all over the arena. Being on the sidelines and hearing the fans is unlike anything else. The Cougars beat Delaware that night for the second time this season and it felt so great!
You are getting married in May: how goes the wedding planning? It is going well! I have done everything myself without the help of a wedding planner so it has been a lot of work but my fiancé and I are so excited! Balancing this AND school AND cheer has not always been easy but it is all so worth it in the end.
Any predictions for Sunday afternoon vs. Delaware (whom your school has already beaten twice this season)? Considering we have already beat Delaware twice I think it safe to say that the odds are in our favor! I have no doubt that the Cougars can surpass them skill-wise but I think that the crowd plays a huge role in their success. If the crowd is full of energy then our team will feed off that. However, no matter how the game turns out I am so proud of this team because they always work hard and put on a show. I cannot wait to see how this tournament goes: as always, Go Cougars!