Coastal Carolina’s cheerleaders are part of the Chanticleers’ Spirit Programs, with the CCU Dance Team. They cheer at athletic events, campus appearances and community activities throughout the year. This guide is based on the official Spirit Teams page on GoCCUSports.com. As of October 1, 2026, Coastal Carolina hasn’t posted tryout dates or requirements for the 2027-28 team. The tryout link on the Spirit Teams page is still labelled 2025-26, and that form is closed.

The Program Today

• Head coach. MaryKate Avant is the Head Cheer Coach. A Coastal Carolina alumna, she cheered for the Chanticleers for four years and was a volunteer assistant coach from 2021 to 2023. Before returning, she was All-Star Director and Head Coach at Carolina Coast Athletics.
• Team size. The 2026-27 roster lists 33 cheerleaders.
• Conference. Coastal Carolina competes in the Sun Belt Conference.

What Coastal Carolina Publishes Now

The current Spirit Teams page links to the cheer roster and a “2025-26 Cheerleading Tryout Information” form, which stopped accepting responses in March 2025. No skills list, GPA rule, fee or tryout date is posted for the next cycle. Contact the head coach to ask about the next tryout and how to get on the list.

The Last Detailed Tryout Posting (2023)

The most recent full tryout page on GoCCUSports.com covers the April 2023 tryout, under the previous coaching staff. It shows how Coastal ran tryouts, but the next cycle may differ in every detail:

• Format: an open gym, two days of skills tryouts, then interviews on the final day.
• Paperwork: the application, a $25 non-refundable tryout fee, a CCU acceptance letter, a 4×6 photo, copies of your driver’s license and insurance card, and the CCU athletic training medical packet.
• Academics: full-time status (12 or more hours unless you are a graduate student) and a GPA of 2.50 or higher to stay on the team.
• Eligibility: the 2023 FAQ allowed incoming freshmen and transfers to try out once accepted to CCU.
• Squads: that FAQ said CCU would have coed and all-girl teams.
• Interview dress: candidates were told to dress as if for a job interview.

The 2023 FAQ also said the team attended NCA College Camp in Myrtle Beach and competed at NCA Collegiate Nationals in Daytona Beach. Only selected members made the competition team. Treat all of these as past practice, not current rules.

Skills Listed for Past Tryouts

The older “Minimum Requirements” sheet linked from that page asked women for a standing tuck, a standing handspring tuck, a toe-touch tuck and a round-off back handspring layout. Flyers and bases had their own stunt lists, including elite stunts for all-girl group stunting. Men needed a standing tuck plus coed stunts such as a toss extension and a one-leg stunt. Use it as a rough benchmark only. The new staff hasn’t published its own list.

Contact

Head Cheer Coach MaryKate Avant is listed on the roster and in the staff directory at mdoyle@coastal.edu. The staff directory lists the spirit squads on X as @coastal_cheer_.

Frequently Asked Questions

When are Coastal Carolina cheer tryouts? No date is posted for the next cycle. The last dated tryout on the athletics site was April 14–16, 2023.

What GPA do I need? The last posted rule was a 2.50 GPA and full-time enrollment. Confirm with the coach for the next cycle.

Who coaches the team? MaryKate Avant, a former Chanticleer cheerleader.

Related Resources

• Appalachian State University Cheerleading Tryout Guide
• Old Dominion University Cheerleading Tryout Guide
• Troy University Cheerleading Tryout Guide
• College Cheerleading Tryout Guides Directory

Sources: Coastal Carolina Athletics, Spirit Teams, 2026-27 Cheerleading Roster (including the coach’s bio), Cheerleading Tryout Information (2023), Cheerleading FAQs (PDF), Tryout Requirements (PDF) and the Staff Directory. Last checked October 1, 2026.