It was a victorious trip down south for a Panther Cheer junior team at last month’s prestigious Best of the Northwest National Championships in Tacoma Wa.
The huge event is a “can’t miss” on the Panther Cheer’s competitive schedule each season.
“Our reason for attending is two-fold,” explained club co-founder and coach Stephanie Kennedy. “One, it provides an amazing and memorable team bonding experience for the athletes who travel down with their coaches, for some, their first experience away from home and a step forward towards learning independence, self-sufficiency and team building skills.
“The second reason is that it is the first time our routines get the fresh eyes of American judges who provide invaluable feedback to our coaches. All-star cheerleading is a highly competitive, judged sport in which teams are always striving to gain more and more points on their score sheets every time they hit the mat.
The Richmond-based club entered four teams and the highlight of the weekend was the performance turned in by the junior level 2 squad — the “Generals.”
They competed in a very tight division of clubs from all over the Pacific Northwest and ran two outstanding routines to earn the title of national champions.
