By: Tara Powell
With the new weather settling in and the coats getting pulled out of the closet, another cold winter season comes with winter sports. Being a cheerleader during the winter season means cheering for the basketball team, but more predominantly is the time to practice for the competitions starting in January.
Cheerleading is just about the most team-based sport you could imagine. It is highly disciplined, as it requires constant time commitments, mobility, and focus. This is only part of the reason why cheerleaders are emerging in popularity: they are popular not just for their hard work and leadership qualities, but also for their perseverance into making every routine beautiful and challenging.
This past week during the Thanksgiving Day game, Belmont faced their rivals at Watertown while both cheer squads rooted for their respective football teams in the splintering cold. But the cold wasn’t the hardest strife they had to face.
“Imagine cheering for Belmont,” said one Watertown fan, looking into her phone camera nonchalantly. “That would be so embarrassing.”
Watertown and Belmont have a long history of good-spirited rivalry, and with that comes frequent face-offs when it comes to sports, and cheer is not excluded from that. The football teams have pulled various stunts, like wearing different colored jerseys than agreed upon before the game. But it all led up to the final score of the Thanksgiving game.
It ended in a total sweep: 47-0, with Belmont taking the win. It was a festive day and a respectable end to the fall season for the cheer team.
The cusp of winter season for cheer is oncoming, with tryouts taking place next week. Come join the Belmont cheer team to experience the dedication, strength, and teamwork of Belmont’s cheer squad and to make it an excellent winter season.
Image courtesy of Tara Powell.