March 17, 2019 at 12:32PM
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Some young cheerleaders in KELOLAND are making history. For the first time, Dakota Spirit's Youth Level Three team is earning a bid to The Summit at Walt Disney World.
These cheerleaders have been holding each other up since June and now all their time and efforts are being rewarded with a trip to The Summit in Florida.
"It means that we're one of the best teams in the country and we're going to work really hard against the other big teams," nine-year-old Ashlyn DeJong said.
It's the first time Dakota Spirit is sending a youth level squad to the national competition considered the Olympics of cheer. The group is made up of kids from second to sixth grade. Blaze team member Izzy Hosek is taking pride in being a part of history.
"I've been doing this since I was four years old and I've been dreaming of doing this for so long," Hosek said.
The cheerleaders got the word this week they'll be heading to Walt Disney World for the competition in May. Cheer Coach Stephanie Farwell says the team works together for five hours a week to make it happen.
"They were pretty excited. There was a lot of screaming and jumping. Some tears as well. They're just super excited to see that they're hard work is paying off," Farwell said.
You'd think they'd be nervous going up against some of the country's top talent but DeJong is confident in her crew.
"Not really because my team practices really hard and I know that we're always going to hit," Dejong said.
The cheerleaders say their sport is different from others like basketball because instead of trying to score points, the team is trying to impress a table of judges.
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Some young cheerleaders in KELOLAND are making history. For the first time, Dakota Spirit's Youth Level Three team is earning a bid to The Summit at Walt Disney World.
These cheerleaders have been holding each other up since June and now all their time and efforts are being rewarded with a trip to The Summit in Florida.
"It means that we're one of the best teams in the country and we're going to work really hard against the other big teams," nine-year-old Ashlyn DeJong said.
It's the first time Dakota Spirit is sending a youth level squad to the national competition considered the Olympics of cheer. The group is made up of kids from second to sixth grade. Blaze team member Izzy Hosek is taking pride in being a part of history.
"I've been doing this since I was four years old and I've been dreaming of doing this for so long," Hosek said.
The cheerleaders got the word this week they'll be heading to Walt Disney World for the competition in May. Cheer Coach Stephanie Farwell says the team works together for five hours a week to make it happen.
"They were pretty excited. There was a lot of screaming and jumping. Some tears as well. They're just super excited to see that they're hard work is paying off," Farwell said.
You'd think they'd be nervous going up against some of the country's top talent but DeJong is confident in her crew.
"Not really because my team practices really hard and I know that we're always going to hit," Dejong said.
The cheerleaders say their sport is different from others like basketball because instead of trying to score points, the team is trying to impress a table of judges.