No Brakes for Avila Spirit Squad

When the majority of the Avila student body is at home for the holidays enjoying a month away from school and stress the Avila Spirit Squad is here working hard everyday and preparing for the most important weekend of the year. Two-a-day practices and long hours in the gym are normal for them this time of the year. The Avila cheer and dance teams attend the Universal Cheer and Dance Associations Collegiate National Championships in Orlando, Florida every January. This year both teams did exceptionally well.

The Glitter Girls compete in the Open Division which includes junior colleges, NAIA institutions and NCAA Division II and III schools. The team competes with two different dances, hip hop and jazz; the team had the honor of winning 3^rd place in the nation in their hip hop routine, this dance was an apparent crowd favorite. This dance won the ladies a bronze medal to bring back to Kansas City. They also did well in the jazz division by placing eighth against many very highly competitive dance teams from across the nation. The Glitter Girls do half time performances at home football and basketball games each week to help prepare them for competition. These dances are fast paced and very entertaining. It is very impressive that the girls can choreograph and perfect so many routines throughout the year while also working on their national’s dances.

The Avila cheerleading squad also took the trip to Florida a couple of weeks ago. The ladies were excited and ready to compete after a difficult year in 2009 because of injuries. The competition consists of preliminary and final rounds. In pre-lims, the cheer team had a nearly perfect performance and they were seated 4^th in the competition. The last performance of the day was completed with perfection and the team was teary eyed with joy and pride. Many more teams had to compete and waiting to find out what place they got was excruciating. Avila placed 4^th in the nation defeating the reigning national champions from Southern Connecticut State University. This is the highest that Avila has ever placed at the national competition and the team was ecstatic. With 5 strong seniors leading the way with positive attitudes, sweat, and tears, the team pulled together under the most frustrating of circumstances to earn a very rewarding national placement.

The Cheerleaders and Glitter girls will have one more competition this year and that is the Heart of America Conference Championship on February 13^th in Fayette, Missouri at Central Methodist University where they will try to win back their conference title. Unlike the national competition, winning the conference championship is determined by a combination of the two team’s scores. Both teams are looking forward to bringing back the 2010 H.A.A.C Spirit Team Championship banner to Avila University.