By JUANIE PRISBREY
The Universal Cheerleaders Association sponsored a week of training and educational leadership at the University of Utah’s campus in Salt Lake City. Among those in attendance during the week of July 14-18 was the Moapa Valley High School cheerleading squad and other teams representing Utah and Nevada.
The week began with UCA’s staff teaching the MVHS varsity and junior varsity squads a series of dances, cheers, and chants. The cheerleaders were expected to master these by the end of the week.
On the first day of camp, the varsity squad had the opportunity to impress the crowd and perform a “home cheer”. The instructors, who were college cheerleaders, stressed the importance of technique and safety with stunts. In fact, the girls received private coaching several times during the week in order to refine techniques and stunts.
In addition to learning a Hip Hop Dance and an Xtreme Dance, there were elective workshops. During these breakout sessions, each cheerleader had the choice of which classes to attend: Elite Stunts, Stunt Workshop, or Jump and Flexibility Class. The teams learned various pyramid formations that could be incorporated into dance routines. The squads also participated in team building activities.
One exercise in particular involved everyone sitting in a circle with a long string of yarn on their hands. Each person took a turn stating a personal goal and a team goal. As each person spoke, she moved her hand in a way so that, in the end, a long bracelet had been formed. The bracelet was then cut into smaller sections, and each person received a piece as a reminder of team work.
Looking ahead to the coming school year, varsity coach Shelley Adams and junior varsity coach Gerilyn Heiselbetz expressed excitement at the opportunity of working with the cheer teams.
“I am so proud of the girls,” said Adams. “They’ve really come together as a squad and learned to depend on each other.”
It wasn’t all work though. There was a Homecoming Rally where MVHS chose the Hawaiian dress-up theme. The cheerleaders had a chance to use trash bags and yarn to create lovely homecoming dresses for their coaches.
On the last day of camp, each team performed their Xtreme Routine. Teams were given different game time situations and were expected to perform the correct cheers and chants on the spot according to each scenario. The instructors then evaluated each team and handed out awards.
The MVHS Varsity team received trophies for 4th Place Xtreme Dance, 4th Place Game Day Cheer, Most Improved Varsity, and Most Improved Overall (Elite). The Junior Varsity team earned honors for 1st Place Sideline Chant, 1st Place Game Day Cheer, 4th Place Xtreme Dance, Most Improved JV, and Most Improved Overall (Traditional).
“All of the girls worked really hard this week,” said Adams. “There were several new routines they learned and perfected within a short amount of time. I feel like this camp offered new material that we will be able to implement into our program.”
