The Cyclone Drill Team will compete this weekend in the Great Plains Naval ROTC Competition at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

The Cyclone Drill Team is a part of the Naval ROTC program at Iowa State available to Naval ROTC students and midshipmen. The team is designed to help members learn more about drill procedures.

“The military is based off tradition, and drill is a part of that. The drill team, overall, is going to enhance their leadership ability, their confidence and instill discipline in everyone,” said Staff Sergeant Christopher Harrison of naval science.

Any Naval ROTC students or midshipmen can join the Cyclone Drill Team, though leaders of the team must be voted in.

Genevieve Halvorsen, president of the drill team and senior in culinary science, said leading the drill team this year has helped her learn a lot about being a leader and has helped her with confidence, too.

“I’ve had to learn all of the [drill] material and procedures and then teach it to everyone, and what better way is there to show you know what you’re doing than if you can teach it to someone else,” Halvorsen said. “I know that skill will help me in any leadership role I have in the future.”

Being a part of the drill team will help all members in their futures whether or not they pursue a military career, Halvorsen said.

“Drill in itself is an amazing way to harness your discipline and bearing — characteristics that pay huge dividends in the military,” Halvorsen said.

Halvorsen said the Cyclone Drill Team doesn’t get to attend as many drill competitions as they would like due to scheduling conflicts and funding.

“Academics are our number one priority here, as well as physical fitness, so if midshipmen are having a hard time balancing commitments, that and whether the team has proper funding, have kept us from competing in the past,” Halvorsen said.

From April 18 to April 19, however, the Cyclone Drill Team will compete in the Great Plains Drill Meet at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

In this two-day event, 19 drill team members will compete in a total of eight events ranging from drill competitions and color guard to endurance challenges, such as sit-ups and swim relays.

Those competing this weekend are excited for the opportunities attending a drill competition.

“We’ll get to network and meet a lot of people that are just like us, from all around the Midwest — people that we may get to work with in the future,” said Adam Pollard, vice president of the Cyclone Drill Team and sophomore in interdisciplinary studies.

Throughout the academic year, the drill team has practiced every Sunday for two hours at a time, but with the date of the competition approaching, it has been practicing three times a week for the past two months.

“There was a lot of learning done this semester and a lot of progress made,” Harrison said. “They’ve come a long way.”

At the end of the competition this weekend, there will be an overall champion of the competition, which is decided from four events: the inspection, platoon drill, squad drill and color guard. There will also be individual event awards for each event as well as awards for each school competing.