In December, the Vista Ridge High School cheer team won the CHSAA (Colorado High School Activities Association) 5A Varsity Co-ed Division championship for the first time in the schoolís history. The team of 11 females and three males competed against about 15 teams.The VRHS cheer team came in as state runner up in the 5A co-ed traditional classification for the past two years. Nikkole Weir, head cheerleading coach at Vista Ridge High School and Sand Creek High School, said coming in runner up motivated the team to work harder to make it to the No. 1 spot this year.At the CHSAA competition, the teams perform a two-and-a-half-minute routine that combines cheer with pyramid stunting and tumbling. About half of the scoring is based on crowd involvement, leading the crowd and making sure the team is sharp, tight and enthusiastic, Weir said. The second half of the scoring involves how they perform with the music. The judges look at technique, creativity and sharpness of the team. Weir said there is a rubric used in judging. ìCertain points are scored based on the difficulty, the technique and the execution of the cheer,î she said.The cheer team prepares for several months prior to competitions. Team tryouts are in April and practice starts in May and continues through the summer and into the school year. Once school starts, the team practices every morning from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. before classes. Weir said, ìThey work so hard. I think people would be shocked to know how much they invest, not just to support the other athletes in our school and bring the spirit to the school community, but what they do on their own to compete at the state level.îThe team is on a roll.They earned a bid to participate in the National High School Cheerleading Championship in Orlando, Florida, which will take place Feb. 10 to Feb. 12. This is the second time the VRHS cheer team has attended.Weir has been coaching the cheer team at VRHS since 2015 and started coaching the Sand Creek High School cheer team in the 2022-2023 school year. ìIím so incredibly proud of the team and honored that I have the opportunity to work with these students. Not every person gets the opportunity to be a positive influence and see kids achieve their goals.î
