'It's a fun experience': Singers make their way to the Pit for UNM national anthem auditions

Eleven people arrived to the Pit on Wednesday with the same objective: to deliver their best rendition of the national anthem in hopes they would be chosen to perform it before a University of New Mexico athletics event.

Meet some of the people who tried out:

Maleah Baca: Seventeen-year-old Baca is no stranger to UNM auditions. She’s been singing since she was a toddler and has also sung for the university multiple times. Coming to the auditions has become somewhat of a tradition for her and her parents. The first time she sang for UNM was when she was 14, and Baca fondly remembers the thrill of opening up basketball games for the Lobos.

“I’ve sang at UNM for a long time,” she said. “It’s really fun to sing in front of the crowd at the games. I’ve sang for a few games, but singing for men’s and women’s basketball is my favorite event to perform at.”

Michael Smith: As an active duty airman at Kirtland Air Force Base, 33-year-old Smith is all about representing his country. Smith has been in New Mexico for two years and has come to understand why so many New Mexicans are loyal Lobo fans.

Smith has a passion for music and singing and gathered the courage to audition for UNM after a friend convinced him to go for it. While some participants had auditioned for UNM in the past, this was his first try.

“I like to sing,” he said, “and I just want to sing more.”

Smith said when he was preparing, he had to focus on calming his nerves.

“Focusing on my own energy goes a long way,” Smith said. “I take a minute to relax myself and then just focus on how I’m doing.”

Dan O’Shea: O’Shea, 64, was casually scrolling through Facebook when he saw UNM posted a call for the audition. O’Shea had never auditioned for the Lobos before, but a friend successfully convinced him to give it a shot.

Though O’Shea has never sung at a Lobo game, he is well experienced in singing. He’s had several opportunities to share his love of singing with others as a longtime member of his church choir.

“I’m really excited to be doing this, and it’s a great opportunity,” he said. “Even if I don’t get selected, it’s a fun experience, and I can prove to my friend that I did it.”

Key of A: Scientists by day and singers by night, the Key of A group are all workers or retirees from Sandia National Laboratories.

Steve Showalter, bass singer, 59; Emily Weigel, alto singer, 32; Todd Ritterbush, tenor singer, 57; and Liz Gallegos, soprano singer, 46, have been singing as the Key of A group for a long time.

The group started in 2012 over a casual love of singing. Since then, they’ve made appearances at Lobos, United and Isotopes games. When the group isn’t appearing at sports events, they’re out celebrating the holiday season, Christmas caroling around the city.

Though all of the members have pride in singing for the Lobos, Gallegos has a strong pride for it as a former Lobo.

“I’m an alumni of UNM and graduated in 2002,” she said, “so I find it important to come out and support the school.”

The entire group is very proud to sing at games and feels the anthem represents the work they do at Sandia.

“It makes sense singing the national anthem since we work for a national lab,” Gallegos said. “Our work is centered around making change for the nation, and I feel like nothing represents that better than the anthem.”