UW Spirit Squad Breaks New Ground at Nationals
January 21, 2003 | General News
The Wisconsin Spirit Squad spends the majority of its time supporting Wisconsin athletics on the Kohl Center court or the Camp Randall turf. But earlier this month their role was reversed as the Badgers competed in the College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championship at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., Jan. 10-11. Bucky Badger also competed in the College Mascot National Championship.
In Division IA, the UW Dance Team took second-place, while the UW Cheerleaders finished eighth. Bucky Badger finished in sixth. It was first time Wisconsin was in all three finals and UW was the only Big Ten program to finish in the top ten of all three categories.
'I'd say the magnitude of what we did compares to Wisconsin winning a Rose Bowl,' said Zach Burnett, one of UW's captains. 'You're not the best team in the land but you're close. It speaks volumes for the program and the traditions we are carrying on and building. '
LEADERS OF CHEER
Wisconsin's cheerleaders, captained by four-year squad members Burnett and Kelley Rummel, were returning to nationals for the first time since 1999. Coached by Heidi Deininger, UW's head cheer coach, and volunteer Marcus Wolfe the Badgers' goal was to advance to the finals for the first time in program history.
The cheerleaders placed fifth in the semifinals to advance to finals.
'After we hit our routine I felt a sense of completion and satisfaction,' Rummel said. 'We not only gained respect for our school and cheerleading program, but we were the first team to ever make it this far...anything more was a bonus.'
The Badgers executed a nearly flawless routine to place eighth. The cheer routine can be no longer than 2:20 and consists of two music sections and a cheer section.
'They need to incorporate baskets, tumbling, stunting ' just a broad range of skills,' said Spirit Squad Director and head dance coach Josette Scheer. 'We had a much cleaner routine [than other squads] ' but since our difficulty wasn't as high we didn't score as well.'
The Badgers may not have scored as well as other squads, but they received plenty of compliments from their peers. Scheer noted Wisconsin received a lot of compliments from other schools, especially other Big Ten teams. Some directors concluded that Wisconsin's eighth place finish was not reflective of the program and performance.
'There were many people that felt that we should have placed higher,' Burnett said. 'That says a lot about our cheerleading program. That was our goal; that was the reason we went down there ' to gain respect, and that's what we did.'
DANCING LIKE IT'S 1999: UW TAKES 2ND WITH PRINCE MIX
The Dance team, led by Scheer and captains Alysia Anderson and Katie Evans, entered Nationals ranked second in qualifying. That earned the dance team a bye in the semi-finals and the Badgers moved directly to the finals Saturday night. The 2003 UW dance routine was to a Prince medley, choreographed by Sarah Blakley from California.
'This year to be in the top three was absolutely amazing, ' Evans said. 'It keeps getting better. It was amazing to beat Michigan State, a team we and other people look up to.'
The dance team improved on its previous two performances, finishing sixth in 2001 and ninth in 2002. It has been a steady climb upwards for the dance team over the past couple of years and Anderson speaks highly of her team's dedication and determination.
'Every single person on the dance team was a former captain on their high school team,' Anderson said. 'Sometimes it's detrimental to have so many leaders, but it was really beneficial for us and for the program to grow. Everyone's work ethic and Wisconsin spirit never faded. All these people are natural leaders that stepped up when they needed to.'
IF YOU WANT TO BE A BADGER
Bucky Badger, performed by Kurt Jensen, placed sixth in the video entry to qualify for Nationals. His video entry counted for 50 percent of his final score. The mascots have a 1:30 routine in which they could use 10 props. This year no prop could be over three feet, quenching any elaborate sets, which had been used in the past. Bucky also improved on last year's 13th place finish.
'He cut together a bunch of music,' Scheer said. 'It started with 'Walk the Dinosaur' and went through and had a little bit of Missy Elliot and Celine Dion from 'Titanic.' He just played to the crowd, threw out some t-shirts, just hammed it up.'
ROLE REVERSAL
'Our main job as the spirit squad for the university is to support the teams,' Scheer said. 'But taking the time to compete and show other people in the nation that Wisconsin does have talented squads is a big step for them because they haven't been recognized in that way before. It's been challenging for them to train and practice in a different way, to actually compete than just perform at basketball and football.'
About 60 family members, friends, and former spirit squad members made the trip to Orlando to cheer on the Badgers.
'It was awesome having everyone down there and all the support helped,' Evans said.
There was also a sense of camaraderie between squads who are used to playing second fiddle to their basketball or football teams.
'The atmosphere at nationals is unique because you have schools used to competing against each other [at games] and then all of a sudden you have schools cheering for each other,' Anderson said.
UW survived a grueling workout schedule to prepare for Nationals, adding two-a-days during winter break. The Badgers also weathered illness that swept through the spirit squad after the Alamo Bowl. Wisconsin normally practices three hours on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays. However, before nationals, the Badgers added practices over Thanksgiving weekend, exam week and fit in daily workouts after the Alamo Bowl.
'We train and practice for this one performance all year, and there is no second chance,' Rummel said. 'At a game if you drop at stunt or pyramid you can put it right back up again and the crowd may be a little more forgiving. At the competition level you have two and a half minutes to prove your hard work and talent to the judges.'
A NEW LEVEL OF PERFORMANCE
'The level that the Wisconsin Spirit Squad has [attained in the past three years] has been amazing,' Scheer said. 'Each year it gets better and better and I think we're headed in the right direction. And we hope to continue that success and keep on competing and supporting Wisconsin athletics.
"I'm extremely proud of our squads this year,' added Scheer. 'They were rewarded and recognized for their hard work, dedication and passion. '
