BYU dunk team adds female member for first time
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PROVO, UT (KSL) — The BYU Dunk Team has added some sweetness to their squad. For the first time in nearly 10 years, the team has a woman now dunking with the boys, bringing a whole new play for the team.
Her name is Camdyn Roberts. The 21-year-old junior said she loved watching the dunk team perform at half time events.
“I always told my friend, ‘They are so cool. that is the coolest team on campus,’ and I never thought it would be for me, because there was not a girl,” she said.
The road to becoming the Dunking Queen didn’t come without suffering. Camdyn was a talented pole vaulter, even making the BYU cross-country team as a freshman.
During her sophomore year she was cut. It was a devastating blow.
“It was kind of like the biggest failure of my life,” Camdyn said. “Something that you work for, for so long, and you work for and train for. When I got cut, I felt like I had failed.”
Being cut from cross-country opened the door for a new opportunity – the chance to try out for the dunk team. Camdyn’s confidence, athletic abilities and no fear of flying got her a spot on the team.
“Honestly, I was a little bit scared at first, but the guys have been so great. (It’s like I have) 20 coaches on the team,” she said.
The key, she said, was timing – being exactly at the right place at the right time.
“You can’t hesitate at all,” Camdyn said. “That’s the thing. If you hesitate, that’s when you get hurt. If you just go for it, and you hit it as hard as you can, then you will be fine.”
When Camdyn dunks at a school activity, the crowd really goes wild, especially all the girls.
“Just her being there is a whole different feel, because the girls just lose their minds,” said team manager JT Oldroyd. “It’s just really empowering for them to see a girl able to do the same things we are.”
During the regular school year, the team will sometimes perform several times a week at elementary schools and other events.
Camdyn has led the way, with more women now starting and wanting to join the team.
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