Buffalo Jill of The Week Danielle

This week, we take a look at rookie dancer Danielle as our Buffalo Jill of The Week. She spent only a season with the squad, dancing on Christina's line next to Christina and Morgan but isn't done dancing by any means. She's working towards her degree in criminal justice but minoring in dance. Now, whether she plans to dance on the big stage again is anyone's guess. We can hope she joins other Jills alumni in October for a massive pregame performance. Beyond that, maybe she'll be giving the Bandettes a look. She certainly wouldn't be the first to transition from one to the other, even just this year with 2 Bandettes transitioning over to the Jills. And before anyone gets the wrong idea, I don't have any inside info on her future plans...it's just some speculation because she only spent a single season with the Jills and if she's minoring in dance, it's hard to imagine her leaving the pros altogether so soon. Danielle is a true Buffalonian in that she's optimistic, something that Buffalo sports fans have had to be for several years. With all the jokes that Buffalo gets for the snow and cold, residents have to be able to handle not only the snow, but the jokes as well. Well, Danielle not only can handle the snow, but actually loves it. Danielle's secondary photo comes from an appearance at Blasdell Pizza in Orchard Park. Shortly after the calendars were released, several Blasdell Pizza locations hosted members of the Jills to sell calendars while the Bills played the Pats in Foxboro. Shown smiling for the camera with calendars open to their photos are Danielle and Amanda V.

Unfortunately, Danielle was one of the few girls that made the squad that didn't get a tryout video taken last year. Instead, here she is along with most of the rest of the dancers at the Bills Open Practice last June.

You can read more about Danielle at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1961067

Cruise Nights and some pics from 2002

For the last several years, Dunn Tire Raceway Park in Lancaster has played host to the Shredd and Ragan Cruise Nights which take place every Wednesday night from late May thru the end of August. Included at the events are things like weekly car shows and grudge match racing with various sponsors helping out at the events. The last few years, the Jills have appeared a few times throughout the season with some of their sponsors. This year, the Jills are planning to be there every week starting with Wednesday night's event. The gates open at 6pm and admission is free. Get all the details at http://www.wedg.com/Article.asp?id=2167502&spid=22409

Marissa D, Tawnya, Stephanie G, Amanda F, Natale, and Kristen heading out for pregame at the 2002 Bills-Raiders game
I started working closely with the Jills getting lots of game and event photos for them and the fans in 2005 but as many know, the webgroup started up in 2001 and I have photos from before 2005 that haven't been archived with the rest of the photos. That's changing now with photos from the 2002 season now available at http://buffaloprocheerbuffalojills.shutterfly.com/pictures/24986 Obviously the photos aren't as high quality for the most part because of the advancements in cameras since then, but I wanted to make sure everything that was presentable was available. Included in these photos are not only some pretty familiar faces of girls who are either still with the squad or only recently departed but a large numbers of girls we haven't seen in a few years.

Buffalo Jill of The Week Stacy

This week's Jill of The Week is 2nd year vet Stacy. 2010 saw a number of Jills alumni attempt a comeback and Stacy was one of the two, along with Anna, that made that comeback. She was with the squad for a portion of the 2007 season before she got a job in NYC with her accounting degree. She came back home to Buffalo a couple of years later and is currently working towards getting her nursing degree. Unfortunately, history repeated itself in 2010 as Stacy was an early departure from the squad due to a heavy courseload, but not before making many new memories and friends with the squad. She spent her gamedays dancing on Eileen's line between Eileen and Katie and even though she left the squad, she's still treated by the girls she cheered with as if she never left. She considers herself to be on the shy side and, except for when she's dancing, that's actually pretty accurate. She is kind of quiet at first to an extent but still does her best to get along with everyone until she gets to know people, after which she's a lot more open with them. Even when she doesn't know someone that well, her friendly smile and demeanor made her a fan favorite, both on the field and at events like at the Jills softball game held last in 2007. Stacy's secondary photo is from the preseason game against the Bengals. Shown here are Eileen, Stacy, Katie, and Nicole.

She hadn't been with the squad in 2 1/2 years when she tried her comeback and, as seen in her tryout video with Reena, she still had the moves.

You can read more about Stacy at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1974009

Buffalo Jill of The Week Jen

This week, we take a look at the youngest member of the 2010 Jills squad as our Jill of The Week, having turned 18 just a few months before tryouts. Before leaving the squad, she spent her gamedays dancing on Christina's line next to Christina and Morgan. Jen is a true Western New Yorker and loves the people, the wings, and even the snow. She's hoping to pursue modeling a little while working towards a degree in broadcast journalism. Buffalo's known for having several stunning women in the reporting business and we know Jen would draw in plenty more viewers once she lands a job at any local station. Yeah, she'd draw in viewers anywhere but we don't want her leaving the area and she would prefer to stay as well. Jen is also reportedly gifted at singing, something several past Jills were quite adept at as well, and two have even used their singing talents to help with a secondary careers with Ashlee A of About Face and Aimee L of The Teasers. Maybe one of these days we'll see Jen in the WNY music scene. Jen's secondary photo comes from the Bills game against the Lions and features the line she danced on. Shown smiling for the camera are Morgan, Jen, Christina, Jill, Lisa, Amanda V, and Gabrielle.

As seen in her tryout video last year, Jen brought more than stunning looks to the Jills. She also knew how to bring it in a dance performance.

You can read more about Jen at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1974004

Jr Jills dates announced and application available

Right now, everything concerning the NFL season is up in the air until the lockout is resolved. However, a lot of aspects of the NFL can't wait until the lockout is over to get things in gear. There are a lot of things that take a few months to get ready and first and foremost among those are the cheerleaders. The Jills selected their 2011-2012 squad a few weeks ago and practices are already underway twice a week for the dancers. One of the biggest things the Jills are involved in every year is their Jr Jills program and they now have their practice dates set to get ready for the Kid's Day preseason game on August 27th.

Key Dates:

• June 21 or June 23 Uniform Fitting at Fieldhouse either day 7-9pm
• June 24 Registration due
• Sat & Sun August 6th and 7th 9am-noon practice at the Fieldhouse
• Sat & Sun August 20th and 21st 9am-noon practice at the Fieldhouse
• Saturday August 27th Kid's Day game performance

See all the details and get the registration form at
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0BwjdYmpIUSzwNTBjYzRkOTctYTE0YS00YzQwLThlMjUtM2Q0ZWQ5ZjZhZDA5&hl=en&authkey=CPS22oUJ
Also, for a look at a past performance, take a look at this video Jills director Stephanie M made of the 2009 Jr Jills performance.

The Bandettes at the NLL East Finals

The 2011 Buffalo Bandits season unfortunately came to a close Saturday night thanks to a porous defense, some key injuries, and a few questionable officiating calls/non-calls. The 6-0 lead put up by Toronto was closed up by the hometown Bandits after a goalie switch but they never fully recovered as they fell to the Rock by a score of 12-11.

Danielle, Lauren B, Krista, Kirsten, Chrissy, Lauren S, Jessica M, and Chelsea
The Bandettes had an eventful season in 2011 and got to start it off by joining the Buffalo Jills for a major halftime performance in Toronto. After that performance which got 2nd year vet Lauren B more facetime on screen than anyone except Jills co-captain Loren (same name with a different spelling..can't be a coincidence that they got the most...at least Lauren doesn't it is...lol), they got to work on getting prepared for the 2011 Bandits season with 5 beautiful rookies joining a veteran squad with only 4 girls remaining from the 2008 Bandits Championship season hoping to be dancing all the way through another Championship.

Jessica M and Ashley at the postgame party

See all the pics at http://buffaloprocheerbuffalobandettes.shutterfly.com/pictures/3657

Coming up next for the Bandettes, we'll hope to see them at some appearances over the course of the next few months before tryouts for the 2012 squad take place in October. The 2012 squad already promises to be a younger one as, in addition to already-departed vets Melissa, Beth, and Justina, Jessica H and Lauren S are thinking about retirement due to schedule conflicts but we'll see when the time comes. 2009 rookie Kirsten could end up being the "old vet" of the squad in 2012...and she's still very young herself.

Bandette of The Week Justina

Our final entry on the Bandette of The Week series for the 2011 season is 4th year vet and captain Justina. Wanna be impressed? Justina made captain in only her 2nd season on the squad after showing strong leadership even during her rookie season. Prior to joining the Bandettes, Justina's proudest accomplishment was performing in The Nutcracker with the Pittsburgh Ballet. Personally, I'd say her accomplishments as a Bandettes have now surpassed that. But then you add in the fact that she earned her Master's degree with a 4.0 average and she's now getting set to go after a 2nd Master's Degree, and you have to wonder how high the limit is for her. Considering her drive and dedication to succeeding, I don't know if she has any limits. One other thing to really love about Justina is this. When so many young people take their degrees elsewhere to work, Justina really wants to stay in Buffalo. Besides getting to stay around family and friends, she loves the Bandits, Bills, and Sabres too much to leave. Justina's secondary photo comes from the postgame party following the game against the Philadelphia Wings back in February. Shown posing for a number of cameras are Danielle, Beth, Justina, Jaclyn, Melissa, and Erin Y.

You can read more about Justina at http://www.bandits.com/bbio.asp?bandID=Justina

Buffalo Jill of The Week Lindsay

This week, we take a look at 2nd year veteran Lindsay as our Jill of The Week. Lindsay spent the last two seasons on the Ambassador Squad despite several years of experience in dance. Quite often, Jills who are talented dancers choose the ambassador squad because all the extra time commitment required of a dancer can interfere with other responsibilities like work and school. Lindsay, however, decided to play it safe and not overextend herself as she's been prone to do in the past. With that extra free time she was able to get her Master's Degree as a Literacy Specialist and do a good enough job teaching that her students make her goodbye cards telling her how much they'll miss her. While she hasn't gotten a lot of goodbye cards for it, I'm sure she knows how much she'll be missed by the Jills as well as she decided to retire from the squad after the season, instead focusing on her career and on her fiancé who's just as devoted to her as she is to him. Lindsay's secondary photo comes from the 8th Annual Buffalo Jills Golf Tournament. Shown posing for a photo while waiting for the golfers to arrive are Danielle, Lindsay, and Vincenza. The 9th Annual Buffalo Jills Golf Tournament takes place August 1st at Westwood Country Club in Williamsville.

You can read more about Lindsay at http://buffalojills.net/article.asp?id=1961211

Another video from 97Rock and more on the Jills Alumni joining the Jills

97Rock has a video up with another look at Jills 1st cuts held a couple of weeks ago. This video focuses on the girls in their swimsuits.

Also, "Jills Management is organizing an outreach project to choreograph a large pregame routine for the “Billieve” game expected to be announced for the Oct 9th game. This routine will include the current Jills squad along with any interested alumni- recent and more mature! We thought this would be an appropriate game to help create an extended awareness for breast cancer research. We expect a significant amount of media coverage for this program which is great for the cause!" If you are an alumnus or know any who may be interested in this, go to http://buffalojills.net/Article.asp?id=2173021&spid=34534 for more details on the project.

The Bandettes at Rd 1 of the NLL Playoffs

With the Bandits in the playoffs for the 17th time in their 20-year history, the Bandits organization is holding a Party in The Plaza prior to each playoff game this season. As a part of each Party, the Bandettes appear to sign autographs, pose for photos, and put on a dance performance. After the dance performance, fans started heading in for the game and the Bandettes rushed in to greet them with team and Bandette posters. The game itself was an exciting one and the team that lost to the Blazers two weeks ago was nowhere to be found as the Bandits held a lead until late in the game when Boston tied the score up at 10. With 39.4 seconds left though, the greatest player in the history of the sport, Johnny Tavares, put the Bandits ahead to stay for the 11-10 win.

Stephanie, Ashley, Lauren B, Chelsea, Kirsten, Chrissy, and Jessica M

Lauren B and Kirsten

Lauren S's line all smiles after the win

Jessica M, Chrissy, and Ashley with their brothers at the postgame party
See all the pics at http://buffaloprocheerbuffalobandettes.shutterfly.com/pictures/3568

Coming up next, the Bandits play host to the winner of today's Knighthawks-Rock game back at HSBC Arena Saturday night at 7:30 with the Party in The Plaza kicking off at 5pm. The Bandettes will be performing and are hoping to keep dancing all the way to a 5th Bandits World Championship!