Oswego East Student Athlete of the Week-Stacey Alexakos

Junior Stacey Alexakos has a schedule that is tough to compete with for anyone. Basketball season and competitive cheer season coincide, which means long weekday nights and weekends. Combined with her employment and maintaining her position in the top 5% of the junior class, Stacey not only survives, but thrives, in every area, which is why she is this week’s Oswego East student athlete of the week.

Cheerleading season can often be a determination of will. After tryouts in May, athletes spend three days a week in the summer, as well as a weekend at cheer camp, preparing for the upcoming season. Once fall hits, practice runs five days a week, as well as cheering each Friday at football games. The winter season is the true grind and competitive time of the season, as the team cheers at both basketball games and competes in competitions on the weekend. Needless to say, Stacey and her teammates are some of the most tireless working athletes in the school.

Stacey cheered during junior high, but did not start competing until her freshman year in high school. Head coach Tiffany Scholle has watched as Stacey has not only improved her skills, but has separated herself from the pack. “[Stacey] came into the program on JV with strong tumbling skills and could fly, but grew into a well-rounded athlete that learned basing and other technical skills,” says Tiffany. She goes on to add, “after a second year split between varsity sidelines and JV competitive, I saw Stacey embrace the idiosyncrasies of the sport and really take to not just the obvious tumbling and stunting skill sets, but also the formations, transitions, and motion work that set elite cheerleaders apart.”

If there is one characteristic to describe Stacey, it is hard-working. Besides being a member of the cheerleading program, Stacey manages to work eight hour shifts each weekend in the cafe at Morton Arboretum, unless it is the day of a competition. Coupled with maintaining a 4.4 G.P.A., this bright junior always gives her full effort.

Her parents, Patty and Dino Alexakos, understand just how hard Stacey has worked, and how much she has sacrificed to consistently thrive in every endeavor she chooses. “Stacey’s best qualities as a person are that she is a hard worker, mature beyond her years, and is determined to excel in everything that she does,” says Patty and Dino. They go on to add, “she works tirelessly to maintain her G.PA. in addition to tutoring, cheering, junior coaching, and also holding a job. She does everything with a positive attitude and never complains.”

Coach Scholle, and the cheerleading team, are benefactors of that same effort, and are hoping to reach the second day of IHSA state this season after placing in what is the most difficult sectional in the state. Not only does Stacey help lead, but she does not mind using the critiques of both players and coaches to better herself. “Stacey is a calming force of progression with her teammates,” says Scholle. She goes to add, “she leads by way of example and maturity. Often, you will find her equally asking and giving advice to her peers.”

With a year and half left of high school, Stacey has plenty left she wants to accomplish here at OE, but has ambitions to major in accounting, possibly at the University of Indiana. In preparation of her future goals, Stacey continues challenging herself academically as much as possible, enrolling in advanced placement courses English Language and Comp, U.S. History, as well as honors courses Spanish 4, Pre-Calculus, and Anatomy and Physiology.

Her accounting teacher, Graham Brown, says, “Stacey is a driven individual. She is striving to be among the top ten percent in GPA for her class. She is very organized and hard-working. Stacey gets along great with her classmates and helps students around her to understand material when they are struggling. She is a well rounded individual balancing both cheer and school. Stacey will be a strong accounting student due to her organization, attention to detail, problem solving abilities, and deductive reasoning skills.”

While there is no doubt Stacey has a bright future ahead, she, and her teammates, are hopeful they can get over the proverbial hump and finally be the team that competes for an IHSA state championship. With someone who has a more on their plate than most, Stacey advises future Wolves to, “manage your time well, because it will help you achieve your goals.” Stacey is a model example of an OE student who goes above and beyond, and we wish her and her teammates luck on their upcoming competitive season.