After coaching cheerleading as an assistant for four years, Coach Faith Elmore accepted the position of Varsity Cheer Coach.

“I really love the opportunity to build relationships with the girls,” she said. “Thankfully, I have an amazing group of girls that are relatively drama free.”

Elmore said she faced some adjustments with the Varsity position, but always enjoys working with the team.

“It can be very stressful getting ready for performances, but the reward of watching them perform and nailing their routines is great,” she said.

Elmore decided during tryouts to combine the Freshmen and Junior Varsity teams since numbers were low.

“The coaches had to make the decision to have one bigger squad instead of two small squads,” Elmore said. “It was the best decision for everyone.”

JV Captain Sydneigh Blue said many on the JV team liked the decision of combining the teams.

“We were actually really happy that the coaches made the decision to conjoin the teams because if not, both teams would have only had five people,” she said.

Not having a freshmen team could be difficult on the new members, Blue said.

“The freshmen now have to learn at a much faster pace than usual,” she said.

However, freshman Diamond Rowe said being on a higher-level team is beneficial.

“We get to meet new people and bond with them,” she said.

The freshmen look up to the older girls on the team, Rowe said.

“Knowing that we don’t have a freshmen team is not as welcoming but it’s okay because being on the JV team is good,” she said. “We are learning from them and looking to them for help.”

Although it was a big change, Elmore said she is eager for the things to come.

“Cheerleading is an exciting life experience,” she said. “The girls get to have memories that last forever and friendships that extend beyond high school.”