PUBLISHED:
Monday, March 12, 2007

Great Gaines

Breckenridge coach leaves her sport on top

By DREW ELLIS

Sun Sports Writer

It is safe to say
that Deb Gaines has had a Hall of Fame career as the coach of the Breckenridge High School competitive cheer team.

In
just the last eight years Gaines has more state championships than you can
count on one hand, and she's now the coach of the four-time defending state
champions.

However,
after 26 seasons as a coach, Gaines is retiring from the coaching world,
leaving behind an incredible legacy of championships.

"I
knew that I wanted to finish with this group, it just felt right,"
Gaines said. "When these seniors were freshman, they were very raw but
very anxious to learn and I wanted to see them all the way through. Now that
they have finished, I just felt like it was time for me to call it a day
too."

Gaines
began in the fall of 1981, when all the Huskies did was sideline cheering for
football and basketball.

"When
I began, competitive cheer wasn't even a consideration, we just did games at
the time," Gaines said of the start of her career. "I really didn't
know what to expect when I started, but I am a competitive person and I
wanted my team to be as good as it could be."

As
years went by, the Huskies started to get into competitions and eventually
they got into MHSAA state competitions where Gaines flourished.

The
Huskies won their first title in 2000 and followed it up with titles in 2001
and 2002.

In
2003, the Huskies were seeking their fourth title, only to fall short by half
a point to Pewamo-Westphalia.

After
2003, Breckenridge bounced back and won the next four state championships,
completed Saturday with the four-peat that the Huskies sought in 2003.

"I
was thinking about retiring last year, but there was a part of me that wanted
to complete that four-year run," Gaines said. "A lot of our past
competitors wanted to see that and I know our girls wanted it to, and I would
by lying if I said it didn't mean something to me to win a fourth-straight
title."

With
the last task complete, Gaines will retire and pass the winning tradition on
to a new coach, who will certainly have big shoes to fill.

"The
big thing is they have to establish relationships with the kids, the parents,
and the community," Gaines said of her advice to the new coach.
"She needs to have the trust of those people and have them believing in
her or him. I will certainly be there to mentor or provide any help, but I
want it to be their team and allow them to coach their way."

As
Gaines has coached her final meet, she was able to reflect on all of the good
times over 26 years, and all of the friendships she has made during her time
as coach.

"Those
relationships and friendships are what I will take with me," Gaines
said. "We still have former girls that help with the teams now and even
their parents still support the team. I have been able to have some life-long
friendships from my coaching and I will carry those with me forever. I have
certainly been blessed to do what I have for all these years."