The margin for error at the top of Oregon’s competition cheer frontier is, well, very tight.
Sweet Home finished second to Gladstone Saturday, Feb. 12, at the OSAA 4A state champions, thanks to “one bobble,” as Coach Amber Rosa put it.
“They did really well,” she said of her team. “It was probably our best performance of the season. But we are so evenly matched (with Gladstone) that there is no margin for error.”
Sweet Home scored 34.10 on Building Skills, 33.30 on Tumbling/Jumps and 31.50 on Overall Routine, for a total score of 98.90, with a penalty point deducted. Gladstone scored 31.50-35.40-33.50 to total 101.50. In third was Ontario, with a total score of 76.10.
The Huskies also won the Leslie Maley Creative Choreography Award for the second year in a row, which is a $250 award toward choreography expenses, named in honor of late OCCA member Leslie Maley, who coached for many years at The Dalles/Wahtonka High School, winning 10 back-to-back OSAA state championships with her choreography.
“They said we commanded the room,” Rosa said. “We were super fun to watch.”
Second “wasn’t the finish we wanted, but I feel the kids were still really proud of it,” she said.
The cheer season isn’t over yet.
The Huskies will host a Friday Showcase event at 7 p.m. this Friday, Feb. 18, at the Main Gym.
All the teams – minis, youth, juniors and JV, as well as the varsity will perform, Rosa said. Admission is free.
Then, on Saturday, a number of the cheer squads will compete at the OCCA Cheer Championships at the Salem Pavilion. Details are at http://www.occa.net/competition-event-registration.