Winter sports are in full swing. One of our current sports is Competitive Cheer, which follows a meticulous set of rules and consists of three rounds. Competitive Cheer is not the most popular sport among students, with only 1 in 10 students having attended a competition. The one student being sophomore Chris Kelp, commented on the competition, saying, “It was cool to watch.” The competitions are long and can be boring for those unfamiliar with the sport and its complex rules.

While the student’s interest is low, the stakes are high. The junior varsity (J.V.) team is currently on a four-game winning streak. They have won five out of seven competitions and do not plan to stop there.

   “I think we have a good chance at winning our league meets coming up, especially when we broke our high score last week at the Pennfield League meet.” Said Bristyn Parker, a freshman J.V. member.

   League meets consist of the league schools, Northwest, Western, Hastings, Harper Creek, Pennfield, Marshall, and Coldwater. The teams meet around three times a season to compete, and for the last two, J.V. has come up victorious.

   The Varsity team is also experiencing the high stakes; the competition is much steeper at the Varsity level, and though they have not taken home a win yet, they are doing exceptionally well with their scores. The Varsity high score this season was 629 points, while the J.V. high score this season was 587. 

 With the season coming to a close, there are only three competitions left this season. J.V. is finished on Wednesday, Feb. 11, at home, and Varsity has two more after that, one at Hudson High School on Saturday, Feb. 7, at 10:00 a.m., and then Districts. All season, Varsity has been working up to the district finals, taking place at Dexter High School on Saturday, Feb. 14, at 10:00 am.

   The Varsity team is drawing up three J.V. members for districts: freshmen Maci McCormick, Abigail Kulhawik, and Natalie Tilford. The current J.V. members are being pulled up to perform round two at districts. When asked how she feels about performing, 

   “I’m excited and grateful for the opportunity, but I am very nervous for districts,” Tilford said.

All three of these freshmen are immensely talented, and there is no doubt they will impress at Districts. McCormick and Kulhiwick have been cheering for three years, and Tilford has been cheering for four. Their hard work over the last few seasons has certainly paid off.