Entering rival territory, the Robinson Competition Cheer team traveled to Plant High School to perform their routine to judges and other vying teams this past Wednesday, Jan. 10. Sweat, tears and bruises have gone into their routine this season as they hope to continue climbing up in ranks hoping to be deemed the best in the county.
With an overall score of 73.5 out of 100, the cheerleaders took home second place lagging behind Plant by a mere 0.7 points and earning a spot in the Western Conference next week at East Bay High School on Jan. 23 at 8 p.m. This conference consists of the top 12 best teams in Hillsborough County who will compete for the number one spot.
The two-and-a-half-minute routine began with the cheer which is also performed on the sidelines at football games. The chants “black” and “white” segue the cheerleaders into their dance routine next. Their dance begins with stunts like a switch up, inversion, high to low, low to high, rewind and so much more ending the performance off with a pyramid.
Captain and Main Base Amelia Kempton (’24) recognizes that they’ll be put up against even better and harder competition and is excited to take it on.
“I’m looking forward to competing. It’s a lot of good teams and we don’t really get to choose who we compete against for the normal district competitions, but this one everyone had to earn a spot to get there,” Kempton said. “It’ll all be really good competition and be fun to see where we place and compete with those good teams.”
Side Base Kameron Padgett (’24) expresses how well the team did but recognizes that improvements can be made in order to secure a win at the Western Conference.
“I think the team did really well. I think we improved on our cheer [compared to the last competition],” Padgett said. “We can improve on hitting our elites [or stunts] because it’s inconsistent right now.”
The cheerleaders are currently practicing preparing for the Western Conference with a positive mindset.
“I’m excited to show that Robinson cheer is a top team in Hillsborough County and hopefully get first place,” Padgett said.