For the fifth time this year, the varsity cheer super squad took home first place at the Fellowship of Christian Cheerleaders (FCC) West Coast Championship Competition at Azusa Pacific University, Feb. 28. The cheerleaders now boast a five for five record since the beginning of the year.

The judges graded the teams according to three categories. The squad received a score of 7.9 out of 10 for cheer/dance elements, a 7 out of 10 for jump/tumbling and a 7.5 out of 10 for stunts/crowd appeal.

The FCC competitions also award the best overall team in each division with the title of grand champion. The super squad received this recognition twice this year ? at the Capital Classic and at the GSSA Cheer and Dance Championships ? but fell short at the West Coast Championship.

Although the junior varsity squad won the title last year, the team from Tri-City Christian in Vista, CA, claimed it this year.

“I was a little disappointed, but I was really happy for Tri-City Christian because they are our sister team from camp,” Katie Mendenhall, cheer coach, said.

Although they won first place, the girls still experienced difficulties in the weeks leading to the West Coast competition. Senior and co-captain Natalie McCallum broke her finger in her car door, forcing the squad to alter its routine for the championships.

“I was not sad that I couldn’t compete ? I mean, it was odd sitting on the side of the mats ? but I was so glad that my injury didn’t stop them from winning,” McCallum said. “I was so excited.”

Although Mendenhall originally opted to skip the competition, she instead made a few changes to the routine which lowered the difficulty level to accommodate setbacks, she said.

“The girls did not want to not go because West Coast is a big deal,” Mendenhall said. “But we were able to restructure the routine by taking out a stunt group and only using the four full stunt groups we had.

“They worked together and had a positive attitude to get the work done that they needed. They did what they needed to do to make it competitive.”

Despite the changes, freshman squad member Morgan Childs said she was excited to show off a new routine to judges and hoped that adrenaline would keep other members confident.

“I was happy that we were going, but I was also really nervous,” Childs said. “I felt pretty good about the changes we made on the partner stunts and the jumping jacks. I felt that as long as everyone pushed for their stunts, we would hit an awesome routine.”

Mendenhall believes the sudden change to the routine challenged the cheerleaders and taught them to overcome obstacles, she said.

“I think this challenge makes them better by teaching them not to get too comfortable with anything, but to keep striving because you never know what is around the corner,” Mendenhall said.

Mendenhall believes that the FCC judged much harsher than most competitions, even though the girls received comments such as “nice, clean look” and “loved the overall routine,” she said.

Although some of the cheerleaders thought they performed well, many agreed that they had executed better routines at past competitions.

“Honestly, I was not sure at all whether we would win,” Childs said. “I did not think it was our best performance. When we won, I was surprised, but more excited than anything else.”

The squad will next compete at the United Spirit Association Nationals, its largest competition of the year, in Anaheim, CA, at the Anaheim Convention Center, March 27-29. The cheerleaders will face their rival squad from Central High School

“I know we put a lot of emphasis on Central, but there will be more teams at nationals that are as good as we are,” Mendenhall said. “There will be anywhere from 20-30 teams from our division based off last year. We have to be at the top of our game.”

For the complete competition schedule, visit the cheer Web site. For more information on the super squad’s past competitions, visit the Feb. 6 article, Cheer conquers second-straight Clovis Pep Classic or e-mail Katie Mendenhall.