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Louisburg cheer hosts competition to get ready for state

Andy Brown / Louisburg Sports Zone
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The Louisburg High School cheer team gets ready to take the floor during the Heartland Cheer Showcase on Nov. 3, that was hosted by LHS. The Wildcat cheerleaders used that competition to get ready for the state event this Saturday in Topeka.


 

With one of the biggest competitions of the season just a few days away, the Louisburg High School cheer squad got a little practice in at its home gym.

The Wildcat cheerleaders were joined by about 13 other teams in an effort to tune up their routine before the Spirit Game Day showcase this Saturday in Topeka.

Louisburg hosted the Heartland Cheer Showcase on Nov. 3 at Louisburg High School and it is the first ever cheer competition hosted by the Wildcats. It was an effort that was nearly a year in the making as parents, along with the cheerleaders themselves, banded together to put on the event.

“The competition is a huge honor and time commitment,” Louisburg coach Dana Shaffer said. “We had several parents behind the scenes that worked over the last year to get this up and going. We had to have KSHSAA approval and then administration approval. Of course there are some kinks to work out, but that was to be expected.

“We hosted 13 teams and a total of 350 girls. This event could not have taken place without the help of the Cheer Cat Backers. It was a great experience for the girls to see what time and effort that goes into a big competition. It was also nice to have them see how other cheer squads prepare for competition.”

The LHS cheer team opened the competition with an exhibition performance in front of its home fans, before turning it over to the other squads.

Shawnee Mission East earned a Superior rating during the Louisburg showcase in the Gameday Routine, while Shawnee Mission North, Blue Valley West, Basehor-Linwood, Shawnee Mission East and Blue Valley Northwest had outstanding ratings in the cheer and dance competition.

Louisburg senior Shaylor Whitham (front) and junior Gabby Tappan perform during the Wildcats’ exhibition routine on Nov. 3 when the Wildcats hosted the Heartland Cheer Showcase.

Blue Valley Northwest won the choreography award, Blue Valley West won stunt sequence, Shawnee Mission East won the top tumbling honor and Basehor-Linwood was tops in jumps. Baldwin High School won the Purple Heart Award.

Prime Accounting

Since Louisburg was busy hosting the event, they couldn’t compete for awards themselves, but the Wildcats found a lot of positives from it.

One of those is the fact they get to tune up their routine prior to this weekend’s Spirit Game Day competition, which is put on by the Kansas State High School Activities Association. It gives Louisburg, and other schools around the state, a chance to earn a state championship.

Fellow Miami County school, Osawatomie, won the Class 4A title in the event’s first year.

“Having the Heartland Showcase the beginning of November gets squads ready for state,” Shaffer said. “You can get judges feedback and work out any problems before state in Topeka. Even though we didn’t compete, we showed off our skills to the judges just to get feedback. The whole team was involved along with many family members and staff.”

Now Louisburg will prepare for the state event that will be held Saturday at the Topeka Expocentre. It is that competition that the Wildcats hope to make their mark after falling short of their goal last season.

Cecilia Bindi rises up in the air with the help of teammates Addie Katzer, Lauren Vincent and Kaitlyn Lewer.

“State is just a huge honor to be able to attend,” Shaffer said. “We will compete against other 4A Kansas schools to take home the state title. Last year, the team didn’t get the result we were hoping for so we have something to prove this year. We will perform three separate times throughout the day then around 1 we find out if we are one of the top 10 teams that get to advance to the finals. If we do then we will perform one 3-minute routine.”

The Wildcats will perform a band chant at 9:32 a.m., followed by the school fight song at 11:12 and a crowd leading performance at 12:54 p.m.

Tickets to the event are $15 and parking is $5.

Members of the Wildcat team that competed are Leia Shaffer, Shaylor Whitham, Addie Katzer, Billie Casebeer, Kaitlyn Lewer, Hallie Hutsell, Lexi Pena, Brooklyn Mitchell, Lauren Vincent, Gabby Tappan, Ashlyn McManigal, Cecilia Bindi, Sammy McDaniel, Anna Morrison, Jadyn Amren, Lacie Kallevig, Andrea Gaza, Brielle White, Jayden Trester and Eleanor Willming.