There was no eight-pete this year, but the reigning Patriot District champs tumbled to the state competition anyway.
After achieving second place at the Northern Region Semifinals, the Varsity cheerleaders advanced to the Regional Finals.
The team, in fact, has even more to be proud of. The hard work, sportsmanship and teamwork that they exhibited during the season earned them an invitation to a cheer-off.
“We did not make States but [the state’s judges] asked us to do an exhibition in stunt competition,” said Varsity cheerleading coach Betsy Fawsett. “We didn’t compete for the state title, but it was like a mini-competition.”
While this may not have been the outcome the team was hoping for, they were still excited about the opportunity that lay in front of them.
“It was really cool that we got the chance to do the exhibition because most of the school’s don’t get chances like this,” said sophomore Amy Peterson. “We were given the chance because of our good sportsmanship and teamwork.”
The girls went to States to show the VHSL judges what they might like to include in future VHSL state cheer competition.
Right now, the cheer competition consists of each team performing one routine to win the state title, but with the judges’ recommendations, VHSL might consider adding a stunt competition into the state championship event.
Even though nothing is final, our cheerleaders could be starting a new trend, along with being the first ones to compete in this new category.
“The exhibition is just to show the VHSL some of the options they have and see if it’s something they would like to see in the future,” said Fawsett.
The difference between the usual cheer competition and this stunt competition is significant. In a typical competition, groups perform a variety of routines and then come together at the end of the routine. In the stunt competition, however, everyone on the team performs uniform routines throughout the whole competition.
“The stunt competition was much more stress-free because stunts mostly contained basic skills that we have down firmly,” said junior Sierra Hennessey.
The girls raved about how exciting and fun it was to be at the event going head-to-head with just one other team. They ended up tying in the mini-competition, but the girls mostly focused on their great teamwork and enjoying the experience.
“It was exciting being like the guinea pigs to be the first one to do the exhibition,” said senior Kelsey Kirkman. “It was as if we were given a second chance to prove ourselves to the judges and I think it was a great way to end the season and say our goodbyes to the underclassmen.”