Averi’s final cheer comp season has come to a close in the most perfect way! They started the season with HALF of the team being brand new to comp. So they knew they had a long road ahead but these kids worked so hard! Their first comp was a tough one in Hot Springs right out of the gate… Cabot and El Dorado were there and are always so good! They got 2nd to Cabot in this one but looked so strong! Next was the Alma comp which is always tough too! This had Alma and El Dorado. This time they came up short BUT they did win the strong man competition! Averi was a base in that! So fun! After that one was a comp in Van Buren where they WON and then a final one in Bentonville that they won as well! Which brought on STATE!!! They were nervous because of how good the Ark teams were this year but they looked AMAZING and got runner-up. SO COOL! Which meant they got to go to NATIONALS!!!!! That was their ultimate goal regardless so BIG success! After all the fundraising madness we made it to ORLANDO! The kids competed in prelims on Friday and went to their hotel to find out the results….. for the 3rd straight time they were FIRST out of prelims getting to SKIP semis and go straight to FINALS!! These moments watching them find out are some of my favorite cheer memories to date. Priceless. On Sunday they competed in finals and again looked perfect! Its always nerve wracking during the awards because I knew they would do well but I also knew these perfectionists kids wouldn’t accept anything than 1st and thats what they got!! Back To Back National Champions! <3
*climbing atop my soap box* Watching Averi fall in love with cheer over the last 5 years has been an absolute dream! I have been a mom on MANY different kinds of teams with my girls over the years and can absolutely say Southside Cheer are 2x champions for a reason. It starts and ends with dedicated leadership who understands their role as a coach/teacher and their role in leading teenagers… I respect Coach Graham tremendously for all she does for this team and how she does it. And you have to give credit to these kids. They are teens so of course I am sure there are moments they are not their best. However, their ability to keep the drama at minimum and the standards high are just beyond classy. I am so proud Averi was on this team and look forward to seeing them succeed in the future!
Enjoy the pics!!!
