Health & Fitness
PHS Cheerleaders Win State Titles
The PHS Cheerleaders are the State Champions again, yet few fans know about the competitive side of the sport. It's time to spread the word.
On Sunday, March 11, the 19 members of s Varsity Cheer squad continued their domination of the Interscholastic League by winning their sixth state title in a row in the Medium Division. They are also the "Top All Girl Squad" in Rhode Island, finishing second overall behind the La Salle Academy Co-ed Team. Coach Debora Valente is happy.
Competitive cheerleading is one of the most sucessful teams at PHS, and is also one of the least understood. Back in the old days when I was in school (before the invention of the calculator) cheer teams did peppy chants, waving pom poms and sporting saddle shoes on the sidelines of football games. Back in the even older days, squads were all male, with multiple U.S. presidents (Franklin D. Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Ron Reagan and George W. Bush) as alumni.
This sport has evolved over the decades into a tough, competitive sport with a side mostly unseen by the public. The Interscholastic High School League in Rhode Island is divided into All Girl and Co-ed Categories, then into S-M-L divisions with placement determined by the female population of the school, not the size of the team. The required routine is 2:30 long, and you get one chance, and only one chance to hit it perfectly.
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With 60 seconds devoted to cheer and 90 seconds of dance choreographed to music interspersed with tumbling and seemingly impossible stunts, the routines exude energy. The first time that I saw a dozen members of the squad execute a round off, back tuck (flip) in perfect unison, my jaw and everyone else's in the gym dropped.
Tonight (Wednesday, March 14), the girls are at La Salle for the Individual State meet. The competitive season ends on Saturday at the Regional Competition in Lawrence, MA. I'll let you know how they do.