The Riverside Brookfield High School varsity competitive cheerleading team took home second place on Jan. 10 at the Illinois Cheerleading Coaches Association (ICCA) state competition in Springfield, Illinois. The team qualified for state after attending an ICCA invitational competition in Peoria and scoring over 80, which is required of all varsity teams.
The cheer team, led by head coach Lauren Vara, got a bid to this extremely competitive state competition through their hard work and dedication, continuing to demonstrate their skill by receiving zero deductions on their performance and obtaining an exceptional score and place.
“I was shocked,” Vara said. “I knew that they could do it, but they read [placings] from tenth place all the way to first place. When they called fourth place and it wasn’t us, I think all of us were kind of like, ‘Oh, my gosh, we got top three.’ To get second was pretty phenomenal.”
The team prepared for two months to perfect their routine, sometimes getting help from cheer organizations that give them tips on how to perfect their routine. This help provides them with individual feedback to improve their abilities. However, this doesn’t mean that the team didn’t overcome struggles on the way to their second place win.
“We relied a lot on getting tumbling, and we needed our two high-to-highs to hit, which is when the flyer is in a one-legged stunt on their bad leg, and then in the air they squat and change their legs, and I think if they wouldn’t have hit, we wouldn’t have made it to ICCA,” senior Mariella Hutar said. “We really had to drill those in and work really hard on those.”
When arriving at the venue, the cheerleaders had a chance to practice their routines one last time. Right before the athletes are called out onto the mat, they stand just outside of the gym. During this moment, emotions and anxiety run high.
“I was freaking out,” sophomore Chloe Gonzalez said. “I did not know what to expect, and I was really nervous, but once we got onto the mat, it was just normal, and I knew I just had to do what I knew how to do.”
Cheerleading can be a dangerous and difficult sport, which is why the RB cheer team has five motivating values: trust, dedication, accountability, gratitude, and 100% effort. Each month, one athlete on the team is recognized for exemplifying these values. These athletes strive to demonstrate these principles, build their community, create bonding, and work together as a team, ultimately helping them with their high score at state.
“We hang out a lot outside of school,” Hutar said. “We do a lot of team bonding activities. I definitely made a lot of friendships through this team, and it’s almost like a family I want to say. We love each other, we all support each other, and I think this year’s team was very good.”
