Cheerleaders

The George Rogers Clark varsity cheerleaders competed in the Jamfest cheer competition Saturday at Slugger Field in Louisville. The squad won first place in the advanced varsity division and were the overall grand champions in the school and recreational division. South Oldham High School was third and Assumption High School placed second. Photo submitted

The George Rogers Clark varsity cheerleaders are headed to the UCA National Competition in Orlando Fla. after their performance Saturday in regional competition. The squad placed second in the medium varsity division of the Bluegrass Regional Cheer Competition held in Lexington to earn a bid to the prestigious national competition which will be held in February at Disney World Resort. Seven squads competed with North Laurel placing first and Harrison County finishing third behind GRC.

Danville High School cheerleaders won  the traditional varsity division at the annual KAPOS competition Saturday at Wayne County High School in Monticello. KAPOS stands for Kentucky Association of Pep Organization Sponsors. The DHS squad now goes on to state competition at Western Kentucky University's Diddle Arena in Bowling Green on Feb. 18.  One of the seniors on the squad, Mary Cait Rolph, recieved the Scarlette Parsley Hooker Academic Scholarship award for Region 12, and seven of the 12 girls on the squad recieved academic awards for having a 3.8 grade point average or higher during this school year.  Other squads from the area also competed Saturday.

The George Rogers Clark High School cheerleading team held its annual banquet recently. Winners were as follows: Perfect attendance: Caitlin Graham, Adaisha Skinner and Makenzie Waltermire. Senior captains: Charissee Ridgeway, Christine Stenzel, Evan Sams, Hannah Edwards, Katherine Lindsay, Katie Ledford, Lauren Charles, Robyn Kiniry and Shelbi Denham. Academic award: Edwards. Spiritual leadership: Ridgeway. Big sister award: Sams. Floor presence award: Caroline Jackson, Chandler Thomas, Charles.

The George Rogers Clark junior varsity Cheerleaders won top awards in their division, taking first place honors in cheer division, dance division and the best choreography award in the Cheer Elite Capital Cup Competition in Richmond last Saturday. Squad members are: Front row from left: Kimberly Hager, Bannely Alvarez, Stephanie Lewis, Ashtyn Gill, Hannah Tipton, Katy Taulbee. Second row: coach Whitney Scribner, Katy Corwin, Katie Franklin, Savannah Congleton, Anna Coleman, Casey Pasley, Laurel Omohundro, Brittany Craycraft and coach Amy Rigney.

Dear Editor: I would like to express my appreciation to The Advocate-Messenger, especially Larry Vaught, Clay Jackson, and Edwin Findley, for their pictoral recognition of local cheerleaders in the Oct. 27 sports section. As a cheerleading coach and youth cheerleading coordinator, I know how hard these athletes work to support their teams and to improve their own skills. Our area not only has a strong group of youth cheerleaders, but extremely talented middle and high school squads.

THE LINCOLN COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL cheerleaders love to compete for trophies and for good causes. This past Saturday, the LCHS squad brought home the first-place hardware for the medium varsity division at the Commonwealth Open at Madison Central High School. The girls also left something behind. As part of the annual "Cheerleaders and Dancers Making a Difference" Food Drive, the local girls left behind boxloads of food to be donated to God's Pantry. The Commonwealth Open hoped to raise 5,000 pounds of food.

After three coaches in as many years, the eighth-grade cheerleaders at West Jessamine Middle School are settling into a comfortable routine with their new leader - and it has already shown with success at a summer camp. Kristin Williams took the reins of the program after the previous coach resigned in May. Williams, who cheered in Jessamine County schools before the East-West split, was encouraged to apply by her niece, a West Middle cheerleader. “I have two boys - a 14-year-old and a 1-year-old - so I wasn't really into the girls' stuff,” Williams said.

Cheerleaders were turned loose on Main Street Tuesday to paint spirit displays on windows. It was truly a team effort- the Ads and Rebels split each window in half, fair-and-square. "We hope Danville wins, too," said Ashley Wilson, a junior at Boyle County High School. Sandra Hoorman, a junior at Danville High School said, "This shows that our town is unified and that we really hope we both win. " This weekend the high schools will travel to Louisville for the state championships.

Among the participants at Saturday's first-ever KHSAA sanctioned state cheerleading competition at E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green was the East Jessamine Jaguars' Coed squad. The Jaguars, who got to the state level by way of claiming the 12th Region title in class 2A, ranked No. 10 at the end of Saturday's competition with a score of 237. Fellow 12th Region participants in class 2A included Southwestern and Pulaski Co, who ranked  No. 2 and No. 5 in the All-Girl Small and Medium categories, respectively.

The George Rogers Clark junior varsity Cheerleaders won top awards in their division, taking first place honors in cheer division, dance division and the best choreography award in the Cheer Elite Capital Cup Competition in Richmond last Saturday. Squad members are: Front row from left: Kimberly Hager, Bannely Alvarez, Stephanie Lewis, Ashtyn Gill, Hannah Tipton, Katy Taulbee. Second row: coach Whitney Scribner, Katy Corwin, Katie Franklin, Savannah Congleton, Anna Coleman, Casey Pasley, Laurel Omohundro, Brittany Craycraft and coach Amy Rigney.

After three coaches in as many years, the eighth-grade cheerleaders at West Jessamine Middle School are settling into a comfortable routine with their new leader - and it has already shown with success at a summer camp. Kristin Williams took the reins of the program after the previous coach resigned in May. Williams, who cheered in Jessamine County schools before the East-West split, was encouraged to apply by her niece, a West Middle cheerleader. “I have two boys - a 14-year-old and a 1-year-old - so I wasn't really into the girls' stuff,” Williams said.

Members of the George Rogers Clark varsity cheerleading squad are as follows: Front row from left: Julianna Clarke, Jamaia Daugherty, McKenzie Davis and Allyson Ledford. Middle row: Julia Barboza, Hillary Thomas, Abby Easterling, Jennifer Stephens, Laken True and co-captain Kaitlyn Marsh. Back row: Emily Rogers, co-captain Hayley Hummel, Lindsey Ritchie, Hayden Grissam, Macy Ridener, Shelby Stocker and co-captain Madison Sharp.

Cheerleaders seeking donations The Lincoln County High School cheerleaders are accepting donations to help pay expenses for the past calendar year. To made a donation, contact Coach Greg Foley at (859) 236-2622.   Lawn chair theater kicks off today The Heart of Danville kicks off its Lawn Chair Theater summer movie series tonight in Constitution Square with the movie “Ferris Bueller's Day Off.” It was released the same year the HOD was created. All attendees will receive free popcorn.

ORLANDO, Fla. - “We're gonna say another prayer.” That was the direction from Casey County High School cheerleading coach Susan Stringer as her squad waited to take the sport's biggest stage Saturday at the National High School Cheerleading Championships at Disney World. Apparently, some sort of “spirit-ual” connection was made, as the Rebel cheerleaders nailed their routine before about 10,000 squealing spectators at the HP Field House at Disney's ESPN complex. “That was the best they've ever done it. It really was,” an excited Stringer said afterward.

LEXINGTON - In July, University of Kentucky cheerleader Dylan Smith fell 44 feet and suffered a dislocated hip, fractured pelvis, and laceration to his spleen, and both his lungs collapsed. In January, he was in Orlando with the UK squad when it won the national championship again. It was a remarkable journey for Smith. He was teaching a gymnastics class in Rhode Island when he lost his balance at the end of a series of moves and landed against a door that had been nailed shut, but suddenly opened into open air. Smith turned a back clip during the fall and somehow managed to land on his feet.

Danville High School cheerleaders won  the traditional varsity division at the annual KAPOS competition Saturday at Wayne County High School in Monticello. KAPOS stands for Kentucky Association of Pep Organization Sponsors. The DHS squad now goes on to state competition at Western Kentucky University's Diddle Arena in Bowling Green on Feb. 18.  One of the seniors on the squad, Mary Cait Rolph, recieved the Scarlette Parsley Hooker Academic Scholarship award for Region 12, and seven of the 12 girls on the squad recieved academic awards for having a 3.8 grade point average or higher during this school year.  Other squads from the area also competed Saturday.

LIBERTY - Cheerleading is a pretty big deal in Casey County. So big that at the Rebels' last home football game, there were more cheerleaders on the sidelines - 25 - than football players, even with senior Cody Denson wearing shoulder pads instead of carrying a megaphone. So big that a member of last year's squad, Jordan Ellison, was good enough to make the University of Kentucky's best-in-the-country cheerleading unit, an achievement on par with a local boy's hoops star being good enough to play for the basketball Cats.