The Bees cheerleaders sparkled at the Suburban League Cheer Competition this year in BBHHS gymnasium on Monday, November 4. They put on a fantastic show flipping, jumping and chanting. At this year’s annual event, nine teams attended the competition. Out of those nine teams, Brecksville cheer got second overall in the national league, falling just short of North Royalton, who took first. The Bees did an incredible job with their routine, keeping it classy, and keeping the energy high.
Each year the seniors on the team create the cheer and routine that they perform at the competition. The girls put so much time and effort into their routines every year. It takes them a good chunk of time before it is perfect. Senior Ashden Dickey says, “Seniors start planning the routine in early August, so we worked on it for roughly 3 months.”
When Brecksville touched the mat, the energy was already noticeable. Their spirits were high, and they were ready to go. They brought as much or more energy than any other team there. Junior Veronica Yakushchenko says, “The teammates and the community, all uplift everyone and encourage each other. We also remind each other that it is only a two minute thirty second routine, so we can put our all onto that mat.”
The Bees may have only had two minutes and thirty seconds for their routine, but it was remarkable, especially the tumbling. In the routine they had 15 running passes. So many of the girls, and especially Nathaniel killed their passes. They were loud and had the crowd engaged. The Bees really gave it their all for this competition.
Competition cheer can be very challenging. The hardest thing though is timing. “Making sure everything and everyone is doing the same thing the same way at the same time is difficult,” says Dickey.
Yakushchenko says another challenge that they face is Stamina. “Having the same amount of energy from the beginning of the routine, to the end [is really hard].”
The competition is one of the most important days for our cheerleaders. “Besides cheering on the sidelines, us BBH cheerleaders have this ONE competition a year. It means a lot to us as we work hard to create the routine by ourselves and represent our school,” says Dickey.
They look forward to this day for a while before it comes. When it does, they only have one shot to make it as best they can. The competitions are scored by five individual judges. Each group starts at 100 points then the judges take off points for mistakes etc.
The Bees may have come second this year, but they are always looking for more!
