Cheerleading is a sport filled with hard work and dedication, but most importantly, teamwork. Oakdale High school has a strong and committed varsity Cheerleading team. 

Cheerleading can be a very overlooked and downplayed sport. When being a cheerleader, it takes a lot of work and practice to perform a clean routine. Payton Reese, a 9th grader at Oakdale, explains her feelings on her position: “I’m a base and flyer, and they are much harder than it looks.” 

When Reese became an underclassman at Oakdale, she saw a lot of good opportunities when being a part of the high school cheer team, “I’ve been doing sideline cheerleading half of my life, so it all built up to trying out for high school cheer.” 

When being a part of a team, it’s good to have some trust and a bond between the players and teammates. Reese explains her belief on the strengths of variety cheerleading: “The strength in the team would be the perseverance this team has shown this year through so many illnesses and injuries.”

 As an underclassman, Reese found the opportunity to expand her experience in cheerleading once she got into high school. She had been doing sideline cheerleading for a good portion of her life, so she took the option to try out. 

At Oakdale, the cheerleading team is filled with strong friendships and sportsmanship. Coach Amy McCheseny has been a cheer coach for 12 years. She  expressed her excitement for the new season, “I am looking forward to another exciting season with a great group of girls.” 

 When being a coach of any team or a leader, it’s good to have relationships with the members: “As a coach, I feel that I wear many hats2 from teacher, to mentor, to disciplinarian, etc. and have in turn created some special bonds with some of my student-athletes.” 

Of course there isn’t just a bond with coaches and students, but there is a family-like relationship between each teammate, “I would say there is a bond, I also would say that teamwork is something very strong between us all working together to obtain the same goals.”

As the fall cheerleading comes to an end, the winter season is underway and everyone is excited to see how the season will go.