Cheerleading might not be for everyone, but it  is for me. 

Growing up, I always played sports to keep me active. My father played college football at Presbyterian College, and he always wanted all three of his daughters to be the most athletic people on the field, court, etc. 

Sadly, that is not the case. My two sisters and I did a couple years of youth cheerleading but it was mostly us playing basketball, soccer, or softball. 

My older sister, Sarah Kate, ended up quitting all of her sports by seventh grade, and took on her career with singing. She is a voice major at Mercer and has recorded several songs.

My little sister, Campbell Ann, plays soccer, basketball, and started cheering this year. On the other hand, I am known for being the most athletic child in the family. (And I am not even that athletic.) 

With running track and playing basketball, I have tried almost all sports. I tried playing soccer my sophomore year and I hated it. I played tennis my ninth grade year and ended up being too busy with tennis and track. 

I played softball until my eighth-grade year and started using fall as my off season. Today, I play basketball, run track, and cheer.

 When my little sister and I told my dad that we wanted to cheer, he was a little surprised and shocked, but he quickly learned to embrace it. 

Now he loves going to watch us cheer as well as watching the football games. At first, I thought I was not going to enjoy cheer, and I only wanted to do it to be with my friends.

 But I quickly fell in love with — yes, it is a sport — the sport of cheering. I am a “base” on the team, and I help put “flyers” into stunts. 

My most fun experience while cheering was doing stunts and learning the dances. When you finally do put someone into an “extension” (above your head) it is a huge accomplishment. Same thing with the dances, when you finally perfect a dance you feel so talented. 

Out of all of the activities I participate in, including doing the Monday announcements, playing basketball in front of large crowds, and cheering, the most nerve-wracking is definitely playing basketball. I say that because stress does not come with much of a responsibility unless you do not have school spirit.

I regret not doing it the rest of my high school years. However, I was the only person cut from the team my sophomore year. 

Yes this is very sad news, but I got over it very quickly and bounced back two years later. Here I am, on the varsity cheer team at Stratford Academy having the time of my life. Cheer may not be for everyone, but it is for me!