Northwest cheer has stacked expectations for the new season.
After having time to rest and rebuild their team, they are fixated on winning big at the state competition, expanding their knowledge and taking performances to the next level.
This summer they held multiple practices a week, so that returners could work with new cheerleaders, prepping them for games and assemblies, and practicing the new band chant.
On June 29, JV and varsity left for NCA Cheer Camp, held in Olathe. It’s a four day bootcamp where the cheer team spends over 10 hours a day perfecting and performing cheers before judges.
This year at camp, Northwest swept with individual awards, received blue ribbons for superior ranking and a few cheerleaders were even asked to come back and work at next years camp.
“Everyone was uplifting, which is great to see so early in the season,” varsity cheer captain and senior Mary Sanders said. “I did see us take more corrections. Learning our cheers, to performing them on the last day, there was a lot of improvement.”
Last year, varsity placed 12th at the state competition. In 2023 they had placed second. Afterwards the team felt disappointed, overwhelmed and dreaded practice. But it didn’t take long for that to light a fire beneath them.
“I would say for the majority of that entire team, this is their redemption,” new competition and JV cheer coach Jennifer Araujo said.
The girls have carried positive attitudes into the season, hoping to bolster motivation and confidence. They’ve found ways to make practice more engaging by playing games, like having hat drawings which determine what goofy interpretation they’ll perform their routine with. These include southern accents or loose arms.
Araujo sees this season as an opportunity to try out new choreography, clean up transitions and implement intricate stunting. She’s ready to bring a fresh perspective, and nurture the individual skillsets of her athletes by emphasizing “collaboration,” “cohesion,” and “accountability.”
She said the team already holds natural leadership and talent.
“Every single person on that squad has the ability to be great,” Araujo said. “They just have to believe it.”
