Competitive cheer qualifies for Nationals at Disney

Courtesy Aubrey Tegland

Aubrey Tegland and her teammates celebrate outside the Tampa Convention Center on Dec. 4.

The competitive cheer team will soon travel to Disney World to compete at Nationals after placing fourth in Gameday competition and 10th in Traditional competition at the Tampa Convention Center competition Dec. 3-4. Four Brevard school competed in the event, but only West Shore received a bid to Nationals. 

Freshman Reese Ransom said the team was well-prepared to compete after having practiced since October. 

“We had time to prepare everything [and] we got everything we needed done,” Ransom said. “We all went in with a positive attitude and worked together as a team.”

Coach Kaitlyn Hoskins said there was little room for error in the performances.

Every time a stunt falls or a safety violation occurs you receive a deduction,” she said. “Some teams had upwards of 20 points in deductions and we had zero. It really speaks to how hard we work to put out a clean, safe and legal routine which is a good reason we received a bid.”

Despite much practicing, Ransom said she was worried going into the competition.

“We were all nervous but we all talked together and knew we were going to do great and we had each other,” Ransom said. “Coach Hoskins prepared us well and taught us everything we needed to know so we were pretty confident.”

Four Brevard teams participated in the event, but only West Shore earned a bid to nationals. The sport returned to Brevard County this year after a 25-year hiatus. The team has a few months to prepare for Nationals they have been scheduled for Feb. 10-12.

By Megan Miles