On Saturday, Jan. 15th, the Newsome Competitive Cheer Team competed in their regional cheer competition. The team placed fifth overall in the competition and will advance to their state competition.

   Newsome’s Competitive Cheer Team consists of 20 girls, ranging from freshman to senior. The team has been training since August to take home the state win. However, should the team win their state competition, they will not advance to any further competitions. 

   “I am really proud of our team. We did a good job with what we went through prior to competing at regionals,” says Mattie Cervetti, a junior at Newsome high school and member of Newsome’s competition cheer team, “We had a lot of girls that had to step up to the team due to others not being able to be there.” 

   Due to the quarantine system, multiple cheer team members were unable to participate in the regional competition. In order to compensate for the absent athletes, other team members were able to step into the roles of those missing. Girls were taught routines in short periods of time, some even learning in under a day.

   “Our competition team is different from the sideline cheer of junior varsity or varsity because our team practices a lot more and has a routine to follow and perform,” Cervetti says. 

   The members of the varsity and junior varsity sideline teams cheer exclusively during football season, which ends in October. The competition team members will participate in competitions through the end of February. Both teams have mandatory tryouts in August. Those who choose to try out select which team they will try out for and what position in a stunt group they prefer. During tryouts, athletes are examined in their stunting, tumbling, dance and cheer. However, those who try out do not have to be a part of a sideline team to join the competition team, those wishing to try out need no prior experience. 

   While no prior experience is required, many girls on all three teams have a background in competitive cheer outside of school. These athletes have had time to refine their skills and bring their best out on the floor. 

   “We are all very excited for the state competition,” Cervetti says, “We’ve been practicing and working very hard towards our goals.”

   On average, both teams will practice about eight hours a week in the Newsome cafeteria. To prepare for the regional competition, the athletes were drilled doing many routines to become more consistent. 

   “Honestly, covid hasn’t affected us as badly as it did last year,” Cervetti says.

   Last season, all athletes were required to wear masks during any competition and practice. During the 2021-2022 season, athletes are not required to wear masks to participate. However, social distancing in competition venues is still encouraged. Therefore, Covid-19 precautions vary depending on the venue’s rules.

   “I’m so proud to be a part of a team as awesome as this one,” Cervetti says. 

   The state competition is followed closely by the annual cheer banquet. All three cheer teams are invited to reflect on a great season of hard work and growth. The banquet will take place in the Newsome cafeteria on Feb. 4th, 2022. 

 The Newsome Competition team will compete in their state cheer competition on Tuesday, Feb. 1st, and will compete against teams from all across Florida. The competition will be held at the O’Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida.