West Orange High Cheerleaders Take 1st In NJ Competition

West Orange, NJ - The West Orange High School Cheerleading Team capped off their 2016 season with a first place win in the Varsity Non-Tumbling Division at the New Jersey Cheerleading and Dance Coaches Association (NJCDCA) State Championship, held earlier this month at Sun National Bank Center in Trenton.

The state competition included over 120 teams in various divisions, according to a school news release.

“The team knew they had more pressure than usual to set a precedent for West Orange,” Head Cheer Coach Kimberly Topping said. “Before they took the floor I told the team that they owed it to themselves, especially the seniors, for their hard work, dedication and commitment over the past four years. They needed to go out there, hit their routine and just have fun and enjoy their love and passion for the sport one last time.”

The state competition was the final event in the WOHS cheerleading team’s season, which began at Cheer Camp in August. The girls performed at every single football game, at basketball and wrestling matches in addition to preparing and competing on weekends.

Their hard work paid off with seven first-place finishes, including victories in the State Championship, the UCA Northeast Regional Championship in November and SEC Liberty Division Championship in October.

The WOHS cheerleaders also placed sixth nationally at the UCA Nationals in Orlando in February.

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Photos via West Orange Public Schools