With over half of the team being brand new this season, the Powell High School cheerleaders really stepped up and competed their best. They went into state prepared, and all their hard work paid off after their nearly flawless routine. Their cheer coach Vicki Walsh noted, “I was truly amazed at how well the girls came together and did what they needed to do.”
Not many people realized how much time and effort the girls put into learning and perfecting their stunt and dance routines. In addition to their daily practices from 3:45 to 5:30, the girls had five practices where they were required to stay until around 8:00 or 9:00 at night. Mrs. Walsh asked a group of former cheerleaders from Bozeman, Montana to assist with the stunt routine. Walsh said, “It is not like buying a routine and is very common for many schools to get girls to come help.” Having girls with experience and ideas, makes coming up with a winning routine a lot easier. Mrs. Walsh choreographed the routine for the cheer dance or non-stunt portion of the competition.
Mrs. Walsh knew the girls were well prepared, but wasn’t sure where they would place or what to expect at state this season. After state wrestling, Douglas was expected to be Powell’s biggest competition. Their cheers and stunts looked really good, but Powell’s routine was very solid. PHS cheerleaders finished their final state performance without a single rule violation or deduction. A violation occurs when a cheerleader steps off the mat or breaks a rule while stunting. Teams are penalized, by receiving point deductions from their overall score. Douglas ended up receiving three violations and finishing in 6th place. The closest competitor was Lyman coming in three points behind Powell.
The moment they announced Powell High School as the 2010 state cheerleading champions was Mrs. Walsh’s favorite memory of the season. This was the first state win since 2003. Being a new and inexperienced team, our PHS cheerleaders were super excited and relieved all of the their hard work and determination paid off in the end. They nailed every one of their stunts perfectly! Shelby McIntosh stated, “I loved just knowing we beat Douglas.” The girls also placed high in the dance portion at State, finishing in second place.
Nikki Gonzalez, a freshman on the team this year, said her favorite part of the season included the hotel rooms at state. She said, “ We almost set the room on fire and the fire alarms went off after burning a bag of popcorn.” She also loved supporting all the different sports teams. Tamara Brown mentioned, “The dance party at Vick’s house, wearing polka-doted bows and socks, and ‘The Hills’ marathon in my hotel room,” as a few favorite memories this year.
Although this season ended in success, Coach Walsh said, “Everybody always has room for improvement.” She stated Powell does not have a lot of tumbling and none of our cheerleaders are capable of a round off or a back handspring. Several of the cheerleaders are close to being able to do a lot more, so that is the one thing she believes the team needs to work on the most. However, at the state competition, the amount of tumbling points has recently been lowered.
Overall, the cheerleaders ended the season knowing they worked hard and competed their best at state. Mrs. Walsh was so proud of her girls and all the time they put into winning State. The girls cooperated and worked together really well to make this season such a success.