You may see them in the hallways or in your classes but how much do you really know about the dedication and time goes into the team who pump up the Huskie Spirit? Rihanna Mackey (12), Cyan Takala (12) and Trinity Walthers (12) are all the varsity cheer captains for the 2024-2025 winter competition season. As the football season came to an end, the cheerleading competition season is underway to continue a legacy of excellence.
The biggest priority is no longer cheering at the games but preparing their own routine to compete. These three were also captains for the football season and will be continuing with this title. To be a captain you need to be able to lead and help your team.
When talking about the upcoming competition season Walthers says “I am hoping we go to state that would be great.” You may not know anything about cheer or the environment of it, but Takala says that cheer is a “place to be yourself and make friends that will last a lifetime;” and Mackey says, “cheer is not as easy as some people think it is.”
These cheerleaders spend time learning their own routine while on top of that also having to cheer at games.
Mackey has been cheering for seven years. She decided to start cheerleading because she liked tumbling. She joined Harlem cheer her sophomore year and started doing the competition season team her junior year.
Takala has been cheering for ten years. She started off with tumbling, then her coach said she should cheer and she decided to try it out. This is her first year being on the Harlem competition team due to the fact that she has always done All-Star Cheer, but she has been doing Harlem cheer since her sophomore year as well.
Walthers has been cheering for eight years. She started cheer because she loved to flip, dance, and jump around so she started experimenting with tumbling and eventually joined cheer. Just like the others she joined Harlem cheer her sophomore year this is also her first year doing the competition team along with Takala.
Being captain is not easy. It takes a lot of responsibility and hard work. Mackey says the hardest part is telling people to do something and then not listening, which can be difficult because everyone needs to be working together to make the team better.
Takala says that the hardest thing is trying to keep everyone on the same page. Making sure that everyone fully understands what you are saying so that the team can work together to reach their full potential.
Walthers says that the hardest part is the questions and making sure you have all the right answers. Being captain comes with the responsibility of having to know all the answers and making sure you are not giving out false information even though you are learning as well.
All three of these girls’ goals for the season is to make it to State! These seniors have done such a great job being captains by being able to help out the team when they need help and sending what the team needs to bring for competition and game days. These three have worked incredibly hard for the title they have and it should not go unnoticed!