Southland Varsity and Junior Varsity cheerleaders capture numerous awards at UCA summer camp
Published 1:56 pm Thursday, July 26, 2018
By Staff Reports
AMERICUS – Both the Southland varsity and junior varsity cheerleading squads won numerous awards when they recently competed at the Universal Cheerleading Association (UCA) Summer Camp at the University of Georgia. UCA is the oldest and largest cheerleading association in the world. Its goal is to inspire leadership on and off the field by providing high-quality educational training for college, high school and middle school cheerleaders.
The Southland Varsity Cheerleading Squad competed with 20 other cheer squads, totaling close to 250 girls from all over Georgia. During the first three days at camp, the girls participated in learning new cheers, chants, dances, pyramids and stunts. Final competitions took place on the fourth day.
The varsity squad earned a superior trophy for their overall performance at camp. They placed first in Band Chant/Sideline Chant and also placed first in the dance competition. The squad also received the runner-up trophy for the cheer competition. In addition to those two achievements, the Lady Raiders also took home the Leadership Award, which was voted on by all the cheer squads at the camp. The Southland varsity cheerleaders took home one more award: The Highest Spirit Award. This award came in the form of a banana.
The varsity squad also earned individual awards throughout the week. Junior Emma Griffin made it to the final round of the Jump-off competition. She finished as the runner-up in that competition. Senior Kara Hubbard, junior Sarah Murphy and freshman Lydia Anne Love each competed in the jump-off competition.
Southland had four girls named All-Americans for the fourth year in a row. Seniors Anslee Barnes, Mary Catherine Dean, Morgan Deriso and Kara Hubbard. All four seniors were asked to be camp staffers for next summer’s UCA camp.
In addition, Deriso and Dean, along with sophomore Jordan Brehm received the prestigious Pin-It Forward Award. Pin-It Forward awards are for outstanding positive mental attitudes and leadership throughout the entire four-day camp. Susan Welch is the long-time Southland Varsity Cheerleading Coach and Advisor. Welch attended a coaches’ workshop for cheerleading techniques and safety.
The Southland Junior Varsity Cheerleading Squad also captured numerous awards at the UCA Summer Camp at UGA. The JV cheerleaders competed with 20 other cheer squads totaling about 250 girls from all over Georgia. Like the varsity squad, the JV squad participated in learning new cheers, dances, chants, pyramids, stunts and safety. Final competitions took place on the fourth and final day.
The Southland JV squad earned a superior trophy for their overall performance at camp. They won all gold and blue ribbons on cheer and dance evaluations all week. They also placed first in the sideline chant competition and third in the band dance competition. In addition to those accomplishments, the Southland JV squad shared the highest spirit award at camp, the banana, with the Southland Varsity squad. There were individual awards earned by Southland JV squad members. Southland had two girls named as All-Americans for the Middle School Divisions: eighth graders Ella Arnold and Lily Haugabook. In addition, eighth grader Tate Young received the prestigious Pin-It Forward Award. Haugabook, along with seventh grader Mia Mixon, participated in the jump-off competition for the Middle School division.
Shay Torbert is the coach of the Southland JV squad. Like Coach Welch, Torbert also attended a coaches’ workshop for cheerleading techniques and safety.