Get to know Maine South HS cheerleading coach Stacy Pater
PARK RIDGE, Ill. — After coaching the Maine South Varsity Cheerleading squad on a volunteer basis for three years, Stacy Pater’s dedication to the team and strong leadership earned her the top spot this year as Head Varsity Cheerleading Coach.
Pater has a rich history of supporting athletic programs in Park Ridge. At only seven years old she began cheering for the Park Ridge Falcons. After only one year of cheer, Pater joined an all-star cheer team where she worked on sharpening her skills for six years. Pater’s dedicated cheer practice earned her a top spot on the Varsity Cheerleading Squad at Maine South as a freshman! After four years of varsity experience, she was chosen to join the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign’s Cheerleading Squad where she gained irreplaceable experience at the collegiate level as a Division 1 athlete.
With her impressive background in cheer, Pater is honored to have earned her spot as Head Coach and to help current members of the Maine South Cheerleading team perfect their craft. To Pater, being a coach is really about supporting the team as they strive to reach their goals. “My favorite part of being a coach is watching my athletes accomplish individual goals such as learning a new skill, or a team goal of performing a routine they are proud of,” tells Pater.
She continues, “My proudest coaching moment was when my team competed at the State Cheerleading Competition after not qualifying for six years. They worked so hard all year and to see them performing on the floor was incredible.” The Maine South Cheer Squad’s dedication has paid off and the team has now qualified for the State Championship every year since 2020. The Championship, held at Illinois State University, hosts the top 25 teams in the state that qualify based on best scores from Sectional competitions.
This season, Pater has helped several athletes reach the goals they’ve been working towards. “Our team is really coming together learning difficult stunts and tumbling passes that will be added to our competition routine. We’re excited to put them together into a routine that we can perform for family and friends.”
When it comes to coaching philosophy, Pater says, “They work so hard to prepare for competitions, and if they can walk off the floor giving a performance that they are proud of, that’s all I can ask for.” She continues, “When my athletes graduate from Maine South, I hope that they remember not only the competitions and the athletic events, but also, what it feels like to be a team. How to have integrity, treat others with empathy, handle challenges and have respect for all. Hopefully the experiences they had with Maine South cheerleading will help them develop skills they can use in life, so they have success in all they do in the years beyond high school.”
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