Starting the Countdown to State
Cheerleaders prep competition choreography
By: Kilah Pfeifer
The Doniphan-Trumbull Cheer Team recruits NCA staff member and Kansas State University cheerleader Taylor Newsome to create and teach the team their new state cheer choreography.
The team and Newsome gathered in the gym on Saturday, August 23, to begin learning the choreography. The team spent the day working on the new choreography in the hopes that all their hard work would pay off at state.
“I am so excited to have Taylor help us with our state routine!” says junior co-captain Isabella Wright. “She made us an amazing routine, and it will definitely help us do even better during state.”
Newsome, who has been cheering since 2013, previously competed with Fusion Athletics, an NCA All-Star Cheer team, and brings many years of experience. Newsome’s background in competitive cheerleading helps the girls feel confident in themselves and her choreography. Her time as an All-Star Cheerleader for Fusion Athletics taught her advanced skills that she can now share with our cheerleaders.
“I am really excited for our state routine. It's super fun!” says coach Danielle Kelley. “We are at the beginning of learning and perfecting it, but I can't wait to see it all come together.”
Even in her absence, the team gets up early almost every Tuesday and Thursday morning to practice the routine developed by Newsome.
“I am really excited to perform this because of all the hard work we have put into it,” says senior captain Katie Christensen. “Everyone has been giving their best at practice, and I can't wait to show what we've accomplished.”
For now, the team is focusing on learning the routine step by step and building confidence. Even though the state isn’t until February 20, they know starting early will give them more time to work on and perfect their performance as a team.
“State is a long way away, but one of our main focuses this year is perfecting our routine,” said Wright. “We’d like to improve our standing, hopefully making it into the top ten at this year’s competition. We’ve been working really hard and have already improved dramatically.”