Competition cheerleading sees growth, success at Eastview

Competition cheerleading sees growth, success at Eastview
Posted 4/7/00

by Wade Petrich
Sports Editor
Numbers in cheerleading for sports teams have been declining in high schools across Minnesota, but competition cheerleading has enjoyed a recent boom in the state.
A sport popular in the South, competition cheerleading has seen rapid growth the last five years in Minnesota. The Eastview Lightning is just one of the many teams in the area that has seen both success in numbers and in competitions.
Eastview took first in six competitions during the 1999-2000 season, won the Lake Conference title, was the state champ and competed in the CANAM (Canadian-America) National competition in South Carolina last month.
First-year coach Robin Davis said the Lightning have enjoyed solid numbers in competitive cheerleading, with 24 girls out this season.
ЛIn the South it is big,Н Davis said. ЛBut it is spreading north. There are more private gyms. Five years ago the first cheerleading gym opened (in Bloomington).Н
Davis said girls are getting into the sport at an earlier age. Along with more girls being involved, the ability level also has grown.
ЛWhen I was in high school, we were not doing one-fourth of the difficulty they are doing now,НщDavis said. ЛIt has improved by leaps and bounds.Н
On the Eastview team, many of the girls have a gymnastics and sport cheerleading background.
This yearМs senior captains Brandis Dawber, Traci Highum and Sarah Fjelstad were all involved in sport cheerleading as freshmen. Dawber said when she saw the competition squad practice, she knew she wanted to be on the team.
Highum said she looked up to the girls who were on the team.
Dawber said it depends on the school, but in some schools it is not cool to be in sport cheerleading.
The Osseo School District recently dropped sport cheerleading due to lack of numbers.
Davis said the girls in competition cheerleading put a lot of time and dedication into the sport. She said the selling point is how well the girls get along.
ЛWe are a big family and many want to be a part of it,Н Davis said.
Along with the practices and competitions, Davis said the team also was involved in visiting a health-care facility, went caroling during the holidays and helped collect canned goods for the food shelf.
Dawber said the girls are involved in camps during the summer to help get to know each other.
Since the sport is not sanctioned by the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL), competition cheerleading can practice year-around. Davis said the team starts to practice in the beginning of June for the upcoming season.
ЛWe are all ready holding tryouts for next year,Н Davis said.
The team usually practices for three hours in the evenings. Depending on the time of year, the squad will practice from two to six days during a given week.
While the competition team usually finds a place to practice, Highum said it has to be flexible.
ЛWe do not have a specific place (to practice),Н Highum said. ЛWe get moved around a lot.Н
With the routine designed for 24 participants, perfect attendance is needed. The captains said it was hard when a girl was not there at practice to do some of the routines.
This was the first year that Eastview went to a national competition, but the second year the Lightning have been invited.
Davis said the school does not pay for any sport to go to nationals, so the team must come up with the money for the trip.
CANAM is one of three national tournaments in competition cheerleading. Davis said the team liked the two-day format, which allowed squads to compete both days.
Dawber also said the time of year worked well for Eastview. She said the team had more than a month to prepare for the competition, since the CANAM was later than other national competitions.
While the team had fun competing in Mertyl Beach, it also had the opportunity to see other teams from across the country. Fjelstad said it was interesting seeing the different routines and styles, especially from the squads in the South. Davis said it gave the team some ideas of how to improve for next year.
The success of the team has helped the popularity of the sport at Eastview, but the girls also said the exposure and doing pepfests help, too.
Davis said a pepfest this year had some of the guys at the school do a routine with the girls. She said it was a good way to show how hard to sport is.

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