Cheer practice underway as squad surges to a dozen

Last season, just two high schoolers signed up for cheerleading. This year, that figure exploded to 12. Head coach Tyla Nelson is thrilled, and you can expect to see Wrangell's cheer squad at every home basketball game this season.

The cheerleaders began practices on Dec. 4, and their season will wrap on the same day as basketball regionals on March 5-8 in Ketchikan, where they will compete against other Southeast cheer teams. The top two teams will go on to state the following week.

Nelson said has heard from two additional students who they may be interested, which would bring the total to 14. While she isn't quite sure what has caused this surge in numbers, she can't believe how much the program has grown since she started coaching last year.

"When I took hold of this program it felt like I was trying to save it from being lost forever," Nelson said. "So, to see this many students that want to participate, I'm really thrilled."

The team will showcase its routines at halftime and during breaks in between quarters at all home games.

"You're going to see a lot more cheerleading on the floor than you have in the past. We are trying to make the games an event."

Currently, they practice their cheers a 6:30 a.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays, something Nelson believes shows just how committed her cheerleaders are to the program.

"We've already learned our school song, we've already learned several eight-count dances, and we've also learned our first halftime show for the games against Metlakatla," she said. "These girls are excited and ready to learn. We're just pumping out material at this point."

One perk of having a larger team this season is that Nelson can let the squad vote on captains - which was not really an option last year when there were only two high schoolers. She said captains not only act as leaders for the squad but decide what uniform the team wears and are responsible for calling out cheers. The vote will be ahead of the basketball home opener against Metlakatla on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 20-21.

Though the squad is just two weeks into practices, the head coach is already impressed with a lot of the students who are new to cheerleading. She added that returning senior Anika Herman has "really stepped up and taken on some leaderships skills."

As for the season's goals, Nelson just wants to have a positive impact.

"The growth of this program is where my focus is at," she said, "and instilling more school spirit and school pride. Our goal is to be school leaders and to help boost up the morale in our school."

After the Metlakatla match, the next set of home basketball matches will take place against Haines on Jan. 17-18. Craig will come to town on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, and the home season will wrap up against Petersburg on Feb. 22-23.