In a sea of cheering females, one boy is in the mix. That boy is Carson Hardy, the newest member of the varsity cheer team.

Since he was young, cheering has been a big part of his life.

“I started cheer at seven years old,” Hardy said. “I’ve had a lot less leisure time.”

Hardy’s last mentor encouraged him to branch out into the sport that he’s in now.

“My gymnastics coach told me that I should tryout because my favorite event was floor,” Hardy said.

Support from his peers and being a rising freshman also gave Hardy the idea to want to join the team.

“My friends told me it would be fun, and I thought it would be a good way to meet new people,” Hardy said.

But performing in front of others leaves Hardy with some trepidation.

“It’s very nerve-wracking because you don’t want to mess up in front of everyone especially since you are the new person on the team.”

Cheer coach Robbin Faulkner recognizes that Hardy fits right in despite being the only male.

“They treat him like part of the team. There’s really no distinction. He gets joked and picked on and is treated like the rest of us,” Faulkner said.

Adding to the support of his high school team are Hardy’s parents.

“They give me a lot of support because they just want me to be the best I can be,” Hardy said.

Hardy also singles out All-Star Cheer coach Chase Burris as offering mentoring outside of school.

“My coach because he wants me to be the best version of myself,” Hardy said.

Since Hardy is a part of that outside cheer team, his status and his skill level makes significant contributions to the school team.

Although he is very talented, he has had his struggles.

“Carson’s strengths are his tumbling skills and stunting skills. Obviously, his tumbling contributes to the skill level we can put on the floor, and his stunting skills allow us to do high level skills,” Faulkner said. “His weaknesses are traditional cheer. He’s just not used to motions, the cheers and that kind of thing.”

Being on two separate sports teams can pose challenges with scheduling, remembering one’s role, etc.

“It’s interesting and kind of stressful at times because you don’t want to be the one to mess up. I wouldn’t really say they affect each other because they are completely different,” Hardy said.

Hardy has advice to any student, male or female, who might live to follow his lead.

Hardy said, “You should do it because it’s a really fun thing to do, and it gets you involved in many different things.”