Basketball Cheer

Cheerleading is the performance of athletic skills, jumps, dance and/or chanting to gain a response from spectators at an event. Cheerleading was originally organized on November 2, 1898. It was started in Minnesota by a group of six males called the “yell squad”.  It's usually tied to football, but many sports have their own cheerleading teams.

• Varsity Cheer

Ms. Jackson is formally the counselor for students with the last names A-K. She is currently volunteering as the Varsity Cheerleading Coach. She started working at QMHS in 2007. She has two children that she spends most of her time outside of school with, and she enjoys running/exercising, as well as being with her extended family just miles from where she lives. The Varsity cheerleading team is cheering for the high school boys’ and girls’ basketball teams. There is no definite number of spots on the team, but the cheer team is coed and so far there are 18 girls and one boy trying out. The cheer team uses basketball chants to encourage the basketball players and the audience with team spirit. Ms. Jackson says that good things to look for in potential cheerleaders are positive attitudes, leadership skills, and good ethics in school and with the team. Some of her expectations for this cheer season are that she expects talent coming from the students trying out, that she ends up with a good team, and that the team is the able to support both the boys’ and girls’ basketball teams. Practice is usually held inside the cafeteria, and the date the Varsity cheer team is officially formed is on November 18th. Ms.Jackson said the definition of a cheerleader is “...someone who supports a specific team and encourages them to play hard”. Ms. Jackson hopes that she will be able to get some new girls not from football season but everyone still has to go through the same process and try out. She thinks that the cheerleading team needs to work on being a cohesive team and getting along together. She believes that cheerleaders possess good qualities that contribute to the team such as being very lively and fun, being hard workers, wanting to be there and being able to help the team become better. The most important thing about cheerleading to the Varsity coach is working together as a team and to ensure safety and belonging within the team.

Megan Meza is a junior and she has been doing cheerleading for about three years. She is currently trying out for Varsity Cheer and really enjoys cheering. She has been practicing and stretching quite a lot to perform with her best effort. She thinks that to be a successful team there needs to be cooperation, the ability to get along and work together. Megan thinks that some things she needs to work on is getting her cheers memorized and to make them clean. She enjoys baking and hanging out with her dog. She expects that the team will be able work together, share, get along, and motivate each other. She thinks the most important thing about cheerleading is team work.

Amy Padilla is a sophomore and she is trying out for the Varsity Cheer team. She did cheerleading in seventh grade and she really enjoyed it. She thinks that equal effort from everyone is what makes a team successful. She thinks some of her good qualities that contribute to the team is her ability to be willing to try and get out of her comfort zone. She thinks that in order to improve, she needs to be louder during cheer practice. She expects that the team will be able to motivate each other and become closer. She thinks the most important thing about cheerleading is to be positive.

• Middle School Cheer

Ms. Moretti is the coach of the middle school cheer team. She says that there are 17 girls that tried out and they have 17 girls on the team. The reason behind her allowing everyone to be on the team is to give everyone an opportunity and promote more school spirit. The cheer team is cheering for middle school boys’ and girls’ basketball teams. They cheer at home games and they travel to the “think tank tournament” (competition at the end of the season). She believes that a cheerleader’s personality contributes to the team, as well as leadership and dedication. She thinks the definition of a cheerleader is someone who can promote school spirit through commitment, dedication, fun, being a role model, and can represent their school in a positive way. She thinks that the girls on the team need to work on learning to take more direction in what they’re doing. They need to act serious and have fun in the process...professional and happy.