Hazen Highlander’s cheerleaders are the definition of school spirit. From the sidelines of football games to going above and beyond during their pep rally performances, these students know how to engage a crowd. For most sports, they have one season that ends 3 months later, but the cheer team finds themselves practicing and performing year-round, always ready to win another competition, or taking home the banana at UCA (Universal Cheerleading Association) camp.
Our cheer team participates in UCA camp every year. These athletes practice and refine their skills whilst getting ready for the end-of-camp performance. Every day, the girls were expected to be ready by 7 a.m., retain an entire day of new information and cheers, be in bed by 10, and then repeat. Even though there isn’t an overall winner, awards are still given at the end of camp. Hazen found themselves having multiple cheerleaders earning either the All-American award or the Pin-It Forward award, where you have to give the pin to someone else who you think deserved recognition. The team also won two awards overall, those being the spirit stick and the Top Banana which is a testament to the spirit and energy that the teams lead within UCA summer camp. “I loved that there were a lot of people supporting one another and even making close friends,” says Ava Pierce (11), one of this year’s cheer captains.
Gabrielle Strege (11) is the 2024-2025 head captain. She’s been in this sport for a long time, starting in kindergarten and finding that cheerleading was one of the sports she genuinely enjoys doing. Strege continues to cheer because it’s something that keeps her motivated, active, and always having a good time. “One of my motivations to cheer is my cheer team. I know we can’t win individually, and we all have something to contribute, so I put my all for them,” says Strege. So far, the season has been good for her, but she still finds that her favorite memory is from her freshman year at cheer camp when she roomed with some of the seniors. They were a lot of fun to be around, and she really loved the bonding experience. Football has been a highlight for her so far, and she’s able to find more fun in it every day.
Ava Pierce (11) found cheering when she was in middle school. The sport stood out to her, and after her first year, she ended up loving it and held a huge passion for it. For her, the season has been going quite well, as she loves seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces and being able to get the crowd engaged. One thing that motivates Pierce is the close friendships that she’s created with her teammates. She’s grateful that they’re able to be there for each other, even when times are hard. Teaching and learning are two of the things that she’s very excited for this season. Along with that, her favorite memories consist of the team bondings that Hazen holds. Pierce continues to cheer because for her it is something that she can go to and forget anything negative. To her, the greatest achievement she’s had would be having the captain title and being presented the All-American award at camp.
Hazen’s cheer team will forever have a grasp on the school. Their enthusiasm is unmatched, and their passion is something that people can only imagine. Ready to step into competition season once football is over, these girls and guys are working multiple times a week to prepare and represent Hazen to the best of their abilities. The 2024-2025 season is going to be one for the books, as no one’s got the beat better than HHS Cheer.