Meet Spring Grove Area School’s cheerleading squad
SPRING GROVE, Pa. — Cheerleading often evokes bygone images of girls with pom-poms or megaphones. Today’s cheerleaders are true athletes who combine tumbling, teamwork, physical strength, dedication and a positive attitude to cheer other teams to victory.
Kelsey Pedmo, Spring Grove Area School district’s winter cheerleading head coach, brings years of cheerleading and coaching experience to her squad. For Kelsey and coaches Hillary Gruzs, Hannah Wheler, and volunteer coaches Jamie Strevig and Kayla Bennett, it’s not only about just coaching. Kelsey wrote, “As coaches we have such a profound impact on the lives and growth of these young athletes and young adults that we mentor, and that is always the most important thing.”
Each practice starts off a bit differently than you may expect, Kelsey explains. “One thing we do as a squad is journal for the first five minutes of each practice before we condition and stretch. This helps our cheerleaders be able to focus and try their best.”
The team captains are critical to the squads success. Kelsey explains, “Emily Manz and Arianna (Ari) Eccles are co-captains. They are vital to our team’s success because they are mentors for the other cheerleaders. Their attitude and efforts made are always an example that is set forth for the rest of the squad. We always welcome new members with open arms! Almost half of our Winter squad this year is made of all new cheerleaders. Our seasoned cheerleaders have stepped up to help them in any areas that they can to be successful on our squad.”
Rockets’ co-captain, Emily Manz, explained that participating in this sport has impacted her life beyond what spectators see during a game. “Cheerleading to me and in general is hard work, leadership, dedication, and taking the time to be well rested and committed to the sport or the activity that you love, enjoy, and signed up for. You always have to be on your A-game no matter what. Always have a positive attitude and spread positivity constantly, even if people aren’t being the nicest to you. I’ve learned to be the bigger person and kill them with kindness. Cheerleading and my coaches have taught me to be open, honest, true to myself, as well as the meaning of friendships and having fun. I also carry those lessons with me into my everyday life. To me, cheerleading is about having confidence in not only myself, but in others, and boosting their confidence as well as my own.”
Grace Lehman, another member of Spring Grove’s winter cheer squad, summed up her experience in one word, “pride”. Pride in being on the squad, pride in the other Rockets teams, and pride in herself for the accomplishments by Rockets’ nation.
Although the Rockets winter cheerleaders don’t have any pregame rituals, they celebrate squad wins as well as the wins of the basketball and wrestling teams. In the beginning of February, the winter team competed in the Schuykill Valley cheer competition. Coaches and athletes were both excited and nervous, especially because the Rockets have not competed since 2016. After a tough meet, everyone was all smiles with their third-place finish, especially as a newer team.
As a coach, Kelsey feels her role goes beyond just cheering. “As said earlier, half of our squad this season are all brand new cheerleaders. Seeing the growth of this squad since November has really been a special thing to witness and makes me even more excited for the seasons to come as each cheerleader continues to grow as individuals and cheerleaders.” She added that it’s not always cheer moments she finds rewarding. “My proudest coaching moment has got to be when one of the girls told me that this season has helped with her confidence. Being a coach is more than winning or losing or hitting every routine or stunt perfectly. As coaches, we have such a profound impact on the lives and growth of these young athletes and young adults that we mentor, and that is always the most important thing.”
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