Houlton cheerleaders capture PVC championship

Though the Houlton High School cheerleaders have struggled with their routine on the floor during basketball games, they made up for that during the Penobscot Valley Conference Small School Cheerleading Competition held last Saturday at Stearns High School.
    With only 15 cheerleaders on the floor Saturday during the competition, the Houlton team performed to their potential.
“They did very well,” said Houlton High School cheerleading coach Mary Jane Cleary. “But, we will be working hard to clean up the routine before we compete again.”
The Houlton cheerleaders will use last Saturday’s competition and their upcoming one on Friday night to evaluate where the team stands among its competition, while also taking the time to rearrange a pyramid that has been deemed illegal at the high school level.
“We will be changing the pyramid from a straddle split to another pyramid stunt that will utilize other elements of difficulty,” explained Cleary.
The squad worked hard to overcome two athletes who were out with injuries, however, they were back for Saturday’s competition. Cleary will be adding the alternates into Friday night’s Aroostook League Cheerleading Competition in Caribou. The competition at Caribou High School will start at 7 p.m.
“This will be good experience for these first-year cheerleaders,” said Cleary. “There is nothing better than performing in front of a large crowd at competition, which will give these girls a boost of confidence.”
Practice made perfect for the Houlton cheerleaders.
“Last Thursday night, it just clicked, as the whole routine came together,” said Cleary. “All of our stunts went up and were steady at practice.”
The first round of the PVC competition was for exhibition only, but Cleary was proud of the way her cheerleaders responded.
“They did awesome,” she said.
Judging was during the second round and the Houlton cheerleaders’ performance led them to a score of 123.7 and first place over Dexter with 118.8 and Orono in third with 116.7.
After the Aroostook League Championships, the Houlton cheerleaders will compete in the Eastern Maine Championship on Jan. 24 in Bangor.