Many aspiring young football players love to attend the varsity football games here at Cass to see what is in store for them in their future. They love to watch their favorite players compete and dream about when they will be on Owen’s Memorial Field. The same thing goes for the striving future cheerleaders of Lewis Cass High School. Countless young ladies come to the football games, not to watch the game, but to watch the cheerleaders! These young girls cannot wait for their turn to cheer on the Kings! Lucky for them, this past Friday, the Lewis Cass Cheerleaders held the second annual, football Mini Cheer Camp.
After school on Friday, September 6, a clinic was held in the Lewis Cass Elementary Gym. At this hour-and-a-half clinic, the high school and junior high cheerleaders assisted the elementary students by teaching them the cheerleading basics. The young girls were taught around ten chants and one cheer (chants are repeated and short and cheers are longer), and also how to properly do multiple jumps and kicks. These elementary students were placed into groups based on their ages. Each group had a few high school and junior high cheerleaders to assist them with their newly learned skills. Throughout the camp, the cheerleaders played some fun games! The younger girls’ favorite game, Little Sally Walker, is always a cheer camp staple. Fifth grader, Avalyn Frey, states, “My favorite part of Mini Cheer Camp was playing Little Sally Walker with the older cheerleaders. It is always so fun!” After the girls learned their new skills and played some fun games, they received their camp shirts and bows! This year’s shirts were white with teal and purple lettering to match the night’s theme of suicide prevention. After the camp ended, the ladies headed home to get ready for the big night!
As 7:00 rolled around Friday night under the lights, all of the cheerleaders were ready to go at Owen’s Memorial Field. For the first half of the first quarter, the kindergarten, first, and second-grade participants cheered on the Kings! They were led by the high school cheerleaders in the fight song, starting lineup, and countless cheers. Next, it was third-grade, fourth-grade, and fifth-grade’s turn for the second half of the first quarter. This group was able to experience some exciting action as well, as the Kings scored and the crowd grew louder! These girls even started chants on their own, without the help of the high schoolers, showing how their confidence as a cheerleader has grown in just one afternoon. Cheerleading Coach, Cassie McLaughlin, said, “I love watching the little girls look up to the older girls. They really want to impress them!” These girls were truly impressive and did not want their time on the track to end! As the first quarter ended, so did their time to cheer, although many participants stuck around to watch the Kings defeat the Peru Tigers in a nail-biting finish!
Overall, the 2024 football Mini Cheer camp was successful. Senior cheerleader, Emma Nelson stated, “I think Mini Cheer camp went well this year. I think we had many skilled girls, and it is amazing to see the same girls come back each year and the new girls too!” All 100 participants showcased their cheerleading skills and rooted for the Kings with enthusiasm! These girls will carry their skills over to basketball season, as Mini Cheer camp will be held again. I think it is safe to say that the future of Lewis Cass Cheerleading is looking bright!
From the sidelines to the headlines, this is Lauren, signing out.
