COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Crewzers Professional Dance Team will be holding auditions for women interested in performing for the Crew's official dance and cheerleading squad January 12-14 at Crew Stadium's Huntington Club. Registration and the first round of clinics will be held Friday, January 12, at 5:30 p.m. The second clinic and preliminaries are slated for Saturday, January 13, and the final auditions will be Sunday, January 14. Attendance at all clinics is mandatory to be eligible for the final auditions.
Under the leadership of Director Kelly Brooks and Assistant Director Joan Schaffer, the Crewzers perform during halftime at all Columbus Crew home games and perform sideline cheers throughout the game. In addition to game commitments, the squad participates in various community and charity events ranging from parades and grand openings of local stores to corporate-sponsored functions.
Previous performances have included MLS All-Star Game and MLS Cup halftime shows in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and Chicago, the Miss Ohio Pageant and the Arnold Fitness Classic. The Crewzers have also been featured performers with such top recording artists as Bowling for Soup, Paulina Rubio, O-Town, Jenna Handler, Everclear and Third Eye Blind.
The Crewzers are comprised of career women and college students who commit themselves to countless hours each week to make them the dynamic team they are. Backgrounds include everything from company executives, school teachers, nurses and government officials to student-athletes, stylists and moms. The squad has a variety of ages, but ladies must be 18 by August 31, 2007 to be eligible for the 2007 team. Registration for walk-ins will begin January 12 at 5:30 p.m. For more information, audition details and pre-registration options, visit www.thecrewzers.com.
CREW HOME OPENER SET FOR APRIL 7 VS. NEW YORK
The Crew will kick off its 12th Major League Soccer season at home on Saturday, April 7, 2007, vs. the Eastern Conference-rival New York Red Bulls. Game time is 7 p.m. The Crew will then travel to Utah the following weekend to face Real Salt Lake on Saturday, April 14, at 9 p.m. (ET). The complete 2007 league schedule has not yet been finalized and will be released at a later date, but each of the 13 member clubs - including expansion Toronto FC - will play a 30-game schedule, with 15 regular-season games at home and 15 on the road. Each will play every other team twice (home and away) for a total of 24 games. The remaining six games will be played between teams from the same conference (three home and three away). In the Western Conference, one extra intra-conference game - compared to the East - will be played, with preference given to rivalries.
SCHMID-LED GENERATION ADIDAS EURO TOUR CONTINUES; KAMARA SCORES
Crew Head Coach Sigi Schmid, along with goalkeeper Will Hesmer, forward Kei Kamara and defender Tim Ward, have been in England since Saturday (Dec. 2) on the nine-day Generation adidas Euro Tour. Schmid is coaching the 20-man squad representing MLS and the Generation adidas program, which posted a 2-1 record on the tour which continues through Sunday (Dec. 10). In its three matches, Generation adidas defeated the Queens Park Rangers reserves, 2-0, on Monday, fell to the Crystal Palace reserves, 1-0, on Tuesday and blanked the Watford reserves, 3-0, on Thursday. Crew forward Kei Kamara scored GA's second goal in the final game. The match tentatively scheduled for Friday against the Chelsea FC reserves will not be played as Chelsea could not field a complete reserve roster. In addition to the games and training at defending Premier League-champion Chelsea's academy, the group is also taking in a UEFA Champions League match and pair of Premier League games, including Liverpool vs. Fulham, which features former Crew stars Brian McBride and Simon Elliott.
Generation adidas, which was established prior to the 2005 season, is Major League Soccer's youth player development program, designed to identify and nurture the elite youth soccer talent in the United States. The youth players who join MLS as part of the Generation adidas program receive unprecedented opportunities to develop their game and hone their skills at the professional level in Major League Soccer. In addition to training and playing with one of Major League Soccer's 13 professional clubs, Generation adidas players also receive educational grants to further their college education.
CREW STADIUM A COLLECTION SITE FOR ST. STEPHEN'S COMMUNITY HOUSE CHRISTMAS CARE PROGRAM
Columbus Crew Stadium is once again serving as a collection site for the St. Stephen's Community House Christmas Care Program. Crew staff, guests and visitors are invited to drop off donations of non-perishable food until Dec. 15 in the Crew Administrative Offices' main lobby. St. Stephen's Community House has been providing vital community services to the Greater Linden area of Northeast Columbus since 1919. The purpose of the Christmas Care Program is to assist families during the holiday season who find themselves in critical situations, caused or exacerbated by such things as strained fixed incomes, job lay-offs and family illness.
CREW IN THE COMMUNITY
Who: Rusty Pierce
What: Wendy's Holiday Adoption Party with Franklin County Children's Services
When: Thursday, Dec. 7, 6-7 p.m.
Where: Wendy's International Headquarters main lobby, 4288 W. Dublin-Granville Rd., Dublin
Who: Crew Cat
What: Toys For Tots Toy Drive
When: Friday, Dec. 8, 7:30-9 a.m.
Where: NewsCenter studios, 1261 Dublin Road (outside)
Who: Crew Cat
What: Ohio State men's hockey game vs. Miami (OH), including mascot broomball
When: Friday, Dec. 8, 7:05 p.m.
Where: Value City Arena at the Jerome Schottenstein Center
