PUBLISHED:
Sunday, March 11, 2007

Chesaning spoils Warriors run at repeat

By DREW ELLIS

Sun Sports Writer

GRAND RAPIDS - One year ago,
Chippewa Hills was the surprise of Class B competitive cheer, winning its
first state championship by surpassing Chesaning in the third round.

This
season, in the switch to Division 3, Chesaning was determined to not let the
Warriors repeat that feat.

After
establishing a 414.6-406.3 lead on the Warriors after two rounds, Chesaning
opened the third round with a flawless performance, scoring a 313, and
seemingly locking up the state championship before Chippewa Hills could even
perform.

The
Warriors still turned in a solid round three of their own with a 302, but in
the end, it was only enough to earn the Division 3 runner-up trophy as
opposed to the state championship they hoped to win.

"There
is no shame in finishing second in the state," Chippewa Hills coach
Jenna Ruddell said. "The Chippewa
Hills community, faculty, and staff should all be proud of what these
girls did today. They fought hard for three rounds and never gave up."

Overall,
Chesaning scored a 727.6 for first, while the Warriors finished with a 708.3
for second, and Grosse Ile was third with 682.6.

"I
knew that coming into today we were going to have to have our three best
rounds of the season, and even if we did, that still might not be
enough," Ruddell said. "Chesaning is a
great team and today was their day. They performed very well and are great
champions."

After
one completed round, Chesaning and Chippewa Hills were tied for second at
194, each team just half point behind leader, Comstock Park,
which had 194.5.

In
round two, Chesaning broke away from the pack, scoring a 220.6 while the
Warriors came in with a 212.3, and Comstock
Park fell back to third
with a score of 204.8.

Chesaning
was one of the first teams to compete in round three and its strong round
left little chance for the Warriors as they took the stage.

"I
knew that we need to score a perfect score in round three to win," Ruddell said. "Never in my time of watching or
coaching competitive cheer have I seen a perfect score, so I knew the chances
were low, but we still went out and performed to the best of our
ability."

Ruddell now loses 11 seniors from her team
this year, with many of those seniors a part of three teams that finished in
the top four in the state the last three years, including a state
championship in 2006.

"Those
girls will carry a legacy with them that will long live in the gym, the halls,
and the rooms of Chippewa
Hills High
School," Ruddell
said of her seniors. "Future teams will talk about the leadership
qualities and the work ethic these girls showed, and how they built this
program into a championship level team. I will always remember and cherish
these girls."