Rock Canyon Cheer Team takes fifth in the Nation!
By Lisa Nicklanovich; photo courtesy of RCHS Cheer & Kelly Happ
The Rock Canyon High School (RCHS) varsity cheerleading squad finished fifth place in the country recently. The squad competed at the Universal Cheerleaders Association National High School Championships at the Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida.
Rock Canyon Cheer placed ninth at the national championships last year, so the girls knew they needed to step up and push themselves to meet their goal of being in the top five in the country.
The all-girl team qualified for the national championship back in November, placing second at the regional competition. Coach Amanda Munbaca explained, “After a shaky semi-final routine, they became determined to prove themselves a top nationals contender at the finals. The team had an amazing routine at finals, leaving no regrets on the mat.”
At nationals, Munbaca said, “The routine began with one of the most difficult tumbling passes that can be performed at the high school level, and moved on to an extremely elite stunt sequence. The crowd went wild when the team successfully completed two full ‘ups’ in a row, where the ‘flyer’ twists in the air.” The remainder of the routine was action packed, and the team was one of only a couple of teams in the entire competition to compete ‘switch kick full baskets,’ in which the ‘flyer’ is thrown in the air, kicks her legs and lands safely in the arms of her ‘base’.
The team’s hard work and perseverance paid off, landing them a fifth place finish, the highest of all Colorado high schools. Way to go girls!
Rock Canyon High School Varsity cheerleaders performing their routine at the 2013 National Cheerleading Competition in Disney World Orlando.
Rock Canyon High School Junior Varsity cheerleaders at Disney World Orlando for the 2013 National Cheerleading Competition
