Youth cheerleading squads prep for competition | News - WV News

October 31, 2019 at 08:25AM

For decades, Lewis County has upheld the reputation of producing some of the most competitive cheerleaders in the state, and where most of those cheerleaders first begin their athletic careers is with youth football cheerleading squads.

The Lewis County Mountaineer Youth Football League consists of three age divisions, and each of those three cheerleading squads has been preparing hard for their annual competition.

Every year, the squads spend months practicing and perfecting their routines prior to traveling to the big competition. This year has been no different for these squads.

The Mighty-Mite, Pee Wee and Midget cheerleading squads started practicing for the season at the beginning of August, and shortly after that, they began their preparations for competition season.

This year's competition will be held November 16 at Phillip Barbour High School.

The Midget cheerleading squad consists of 13 girls between the ages of 10 and 12. Mandy Starcher is this year's head coach, while Autumn Miller, Charla Chipps, Sarah Sherrard and Allison Atchison serve as assistant coaches.

According to Starcher, her squad has been prepping since the beginning of the season, starting with the basics. She says it's important for the girls to begin with perfecting their techniques and stunts prior to going into competition. Since then, the squad has been working non-stop on its competition routine.

Something that all of these coaches agree on is that practice makes perfect. In addition to the 6-8 hours per week that they practice as a team, all of the girls are encouraged to continue their practicing at home.

"I just want them to give 100% effort at all practices and games," Starcher said. "We want them to always try their best and be proud of what they can accomplish."

Lewis County has the bar set high as the midget cheerleading squad almost always places in the top two or three. While the pressure can be intense, Starcher says the important part is that girls have fun and enjoy what they're doing.

"It's all about the kids," she added. "Watching these girls grow and improve throughout the season, helping them achieve their personal goals and reach their full potential. [We love] watching their reactions when they finish performing their routine and they are so proud. Winning is always just the icing on the cake. Just them being proud of their hard work and doing their best, that's all we could ever ask for."

The pee-wee cheerleading squad consists of eleven girls between the ages of eight to ten years-old. Amy Short serves as this year's head coach, while Lisa Foster and Desiree Detamore serve as the assistant coaches.

This team has also been putting in the hours since the beginning of the season, as they typically practice for eight hours each week. According to Short, her squad has spent the season focusing on new tumbling and stunts, as well as learning to work together as a team.

"The most rewarding part of coaching comes at competition when the girls perform and show off all of their hard work," she said. "I love working with these kids and seeing them perform and work together as a team."

The mighty-mite cheerleading squad is the youngest of the three teams, however, they have the largest team out of the three divisions. This year, there are 26 girls on the mighty-might cheerleading squad, all between the ages of five and seven years-old. Desiree Detamore serves as the head coach, while Kristin Droppleman, Casey Brown and Kelsey Tenney are the assistant coaches.

According to Detamore, since her squad is younger they prefer to ease into competition practices. Around mid-September the team began mixing some competition stuff into their regular practices, but it wasn't until October that they started having only competition practices. The mighty-mite cheerleaders typically practice about five hours per week.

"We are stacked with new girls this year," Detamore said. "For a lot of these girls, mighty-mites is the first step in their cheerleading career at Lewis County."

Detamore added that for this squad, most of their time is spent focusing on basics and techniques, such has correct hand placements and learning 8-counts.

"Our goal is to help them learn everything they will need to flourish in their cheerleading careers," she added. "Our biggest goal for the girls at this age is to help them learn to come together and work as a team, despite any differences they may have with each other. We also try to get them comfortable with performing in front of a large crowd."

The mighty-mite squads across the state are technically considered exhibition teams as they are not allowed to compete or place during the annual competition. However, this does not stop the team from practicing and performing a show-stopping performance at the yearly competition.

"It's all about the girls," Detamore said. "Helping them develop a love for a sport that you love yourself and watching them progress through the season. It's wonderful to see how excited they get when they can put a move to a count or hit a stunt they have been working hard to get. There is nothing better than the look of accomplishment and excitement they get on their faces. Knowing we had something to do with that — it is just the best feeling ever."

All three Lewis County youth cheerleading squads will travel to Phillip-Barbour High School on November 16 for their competition. Around 30 teams from across the state will compete and perform that day.