As Franklin Regional competition squad cheerleaders prepare for a trip to a national competition in Florida this month, alumni who came before them will get a chance to hit the sidelines one more time.
Former Panther cheerleaders can sign up for the alumni night, attend a practice on Jan. 19, and perform during the boys’ varsity basketball home game on Jan. 20.
“This is the second year we’ve done it,” said cheer coach Kaitlyn Chelkis. “This year our entire coaching staff is alumni, and we thought it would be exciting to get everyone back.”
It’s also exciting because the cheerleading competition squads each earned a bid to attend the Universal Cheerleader Association’s Division II National School Spirit Championships, held in late January at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.
“We haven’t been to nationals in five years, and my freshman year, we had that chance taken away from us, so it’s really exciting to be heading down there to compete,” said senior and cheer captain Allison Brickner.
During Brickner’s first year on the varsity squad, the team earned a bid to UCA nationals, but the coaches at the time opted not to accept it.
Last year, the competition squad didn’t make to nationals, but is was a UCA Regional Division winner.
“Every year it’s different,” Chelkis said. “It takes a while to set up a new way of working together when your seniors graduate. You don’t really get to pick up where you left off — you’re starting fresh each year.”
Junior Audrie Eggan, 16, agreed.
“We’ve all come from different places with different amounts of experience,” she said. “Now we’re all on the same page and we’re working great together.”
Former cheerleaders who sign up for the alumni night will need to gel quickly, although they aren’t likely to be performing pyramids and other physically demanding stunts.
“At the practice we’ll work on some stunts and skills they can perform at the game,” Chelkis said. “And if they can only attend the game, that’s fine too. It’s just a nice way to bring them back and get a chance to do something we all really loved.”
After the alumni game, the competition squad will get a send-off before heading south for the competition.
Former cheerleaders can sign up for alumni night at Tinyurl.com/3jsax3r4.
The UCA DII National School Spirit Championships will begin Jan. 30. See Varsity.com/uca for more.
