Sunday, March 13, 2005

Sports

Eagles third at cheer meet

By Fred Costello

daily press & argus

GRAND
RAPIDS - Heading into the second round of Saturday's Class A competitive
cheerleading state championship in Grand Rapids, the Hartland Eagles were in
fourth place.

That's when
Coach Paula Cunningham told her team it was time to step it up.

"I
told them to stick it," Cunningham said. "I told them they'd never
get a chance to do this cheer again or be out on the mats again this season.
It was so great, but I'm so sad it's over."

The Eagles
responded with a fabulous final round and earned themselves a third-place
finish with 708.5 points. Brighton finished eighth out of the 11 competitors,
ending the night with 674 points. Rochester won its eighth state title,
scoring a 742.

Brighton
coach Kim Klaus was equally thrilled with her team's performance.

"We
had our goals set at the beginning of the year and we accomplished them
all," Klaus said. "Just being here is icing on the cake. I'm very
proud of Hartland and there's been great support by both teams."

After their
final rounds were finished, the Eagles and Bulldogs gathered together in the
stands at the DeltaPlex, a common scene when the Kensington Valley Conference
rivals compete.

The Eagles
came out strong and were in fourth place after round one, while Brighton was
tied for fifth. Rochester got out to a big early lead and never looked back.
The second round was a bit rough for Brighton, as the Bulldogs encountered a
few minor stumbles.

Cunningham
said she was happy with the way things turned out for her team this season.

"The
girls did a great job today," Cunningham said. "I thought our round
two scores were going to be a little bit higher, but other than that it was
great."

Both
coaches acknowledged a respect for the other's program.

"To
look over and see Kim standing there during the national anthem, that was
awesome. Just to see her back out there on the mat."

Klaus
explained the mutual respect that the rival schools have for each other.

"We
wanted to help them in their quest for the state title," Klaus said.
"We're very proud of them and it's nice to have that respect."

Klaus said
that a difficult second round hurt her team.

"I'll
use the word 'tough,' to describe that one," Klaus said. "That hurt
us a little bit. But the first and third rounds were strong. This was the
first time this group has been to the state meet and they did pretty
good."

Klaus also
commented on the immensity of the DeltaPlex, compared to the normal high
school gym.

"I
told them to just act like it was another high school," Klaus said.
"There's so many eyes looking at you for that minute and a half, it can
psych you out. The girls didn't let it get to them."

Brighton
tallied three-round scores of 187, 197 and 290, while Hartland posted 188.5,
213.5 and 306.5.