Yep, you’re seeing this right! Emerson cheerleaders wearing red, black, and white uniforms! After a whole fall season of wearing Cresskill’s uniforms, the cheerleaders finally returned to their Emerson roots in early November for the competition season. 

Cheerleading is a complex sport, and especially during competition season: the pressure is on. Six hours of hardcore practicing per week prepares the athletes for their competition. At each competition, the Cavos go against teams from all over New Jersey. They perform a routine for about two minutes and thirty seconds that involves stunting, dancing, and jumping. 

This year, the team consisted of ten girls, five of whom are seniors. To learn more about this competition season, let’s hear from some of those seniors. 

Phoebe Rivers walks us through a typical competition day. She says, “Our competitions begin with our bus ride. We always get the vibe and energy up on the bus because in order to compete we must all be focused and energized.”

After arriving, Rivers says the cheerleaders perfect their hair, makeup, and uniforms and get ready to warm up. Once the strict five-minute warm-up has concluded, Rivers explains, “We make our way to the gym and watch the performance in front of us. At this point everyone seems to be anxious.”

Then it is the moment they’ve all been waiting for – the routine! The girls make sure to give 100% effort with facials, technique, and strength.

Once the performance is over, the team waits until awards to see where they placed. Rivers says, “Awards are usually very fun even if we don’t place”. 

Sofia Guttilla, who is a base, says she is going to miss the Competition Cheer Team a lot. She says, “I am definitely going to miss the bond and closeness that we had with the cheer team the most since we had such a small team this season. It just felt like one big family and support system.”

Overall, it was a great season for the Emerson Competition Cheerleaders! Until next year!