At this year’s District Cheerleading Championship held on Jan. 13 at Shamokin High School, the Milton Cheerleaders placed first, making it their fourth district title in a row and 11th overall.
According to Head Cheerleading Coach Traci Ferguson, the 17 girls on the squad prepared for competition both during the school year and in the summer. During the school year, they practiced five days a week, they worked out in the weight room, attended open gym for stunts and practiced choreography one day a week, while some participated in gymnastics during the summer, she added.
“We have practices at least two days a week, so (Coach Ferguson) can get a feel of who works best with who when stunting and to work on new skills,” said Senior Cheerleader Laney Cordetsky.
The squad traveled to competitions at various colleges and high schools, said Coach Ferguson. They compete in multiple small local competitions, regionals, districts, states and nationals, she added.
This year they placed tenth in States, which was held at Hershey Giant Center from Jan. 26 – 27. They also placed 11th for their “Gameday” routine and fifth for traditional routine at Nationals held in Dallas, Texas, on Jan. 20 – 21 in addition to their District Championship.
Coach Ferguson said that she wanted a higher score for the first day of Nationals, but the girls finished strong on the second day. On the first day not everyone had the best mindset, said Laney. They were all nervous because they were competing in front of a big crowd, she added.
The cheerleading program used to be larger, and every year they traveled to Florida for the UCA High School Cheerleading Championships said Coach Ferguson. The COVID-19 pandemic led to a decrease in participants, so they travel less but the bases are still the same, Coach Ferguson added. Before COVID-19, the size of the team varied from 18 to 24 girls.
Coach Ferguson said the squad also does “sideline cheering,” which is cheering for other district sports team.
“Our main focus is to support those teams and lead the crowd to cheer them on to victory,” explained Coach Ferguson. It helps because it gets the girls used to large crowds and helps practice their gameday routine, she added.
The Gameday Routine is based on what might be done at a Friday night football game, Coach Ferguson said.
“We start with a band dance, followed by a situational sideline (offense or defense chant), a cheer for crowd leading and finish with the school fight song,” she added. The squad had three minutes to perform and show spirit during the routine, she explained.
According to both Coach Ferguson and Laney, their favorite memory from this year was becoming District Champions.
“I was ready to not win,” Coach Ferguson said, adding that it was really close between Milton and Southern Columbia.
