Twirlers unite on the field

Imagine a football field filled with girls juggling batons, catching high tosses and performing incredible gymnastics.

This is what will be seen during the halftime performance of Saturday's football game.

Ashlee Banas, feature baton twirler for the Rocket Marching Band, Andrea Whiting, a local twirling coach and former UT twirler Lauren St. John will be hosting a twirling clinic called "Majorette for a Day" at the Student Recreation Center from 10 a.m. to noon.

The clinic is open to all students up to 12th grade, and participants will have the chance to perform at halftime with the marching band.

They will also receive a complimentary shirt dubbing them a "Future Toledo Twirler." Depending on their level of ability, different groups of twirlers will learn separate routines. Whiting, founder of the Perrysburg Twirling Sophisticates is excited about the variety of members.

"We actually have girls who are on the world teams [for the National Baton Twirling Association], performing at the world level and then we have girls who barely pick up a baton," Whiting said.

According to Banas, girls are coming from the five states of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania and Kentucky for the experience.

"In the baton world, there's not a lot of people who twirl so it's a very small world, but it's like huge when something like this goes on," Banas said.

The girls will march with the band and they perform for the tailgating crowd as Banas twirls fire.

The big show begins at halftime when all 50 twirlers perform their routines on the Glass Bowl field to the piece "Tribute to America."

Whiting said UT is one of two universities that host an event like this and she knew girls would jump at the chance to perform this Saturday.

"To get that exposure and that experience to twirl on a college field is big for them," Whiting said.

Part of the clinic's goal is to raise money for the band and the other part is to raise awareness in the general public about the art of baton twirling.

"I think sometimes people don't know what twirling is and they'll be surprised by the level of talent some of these young girls have," Whiting said.

Banas, who has twirled for the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Detroit Pistons, would like to hold another twirler event at a Toledo basketball game.

"It's a lot cooler because you have a high ceiling and you're on a gym floor and basketball's a little different," Banas said. "I really want to [do it this year], but I don't know if it'll happen. I think we'll just take one year at a time and then maybe next year do it."

Banas was grateful for an opportunity to support the band and said she would like to turn this event into an annual tradition.

"I want to do it every year that I'm here and maybe when whoever is twirling [after me] still continues it," she said.