Photo by Daniel DubOIs CHEERLEADERS CHANGE WITH NEW SPONSOR Try to imagine a world without spores. Try to imagine a world without an arena for both men and women to exert their energies into a fi erce and exciting competition. For many, this task only presents a vision of a world without color, without life. withom spirit. At the risk ofpressing you into a greater depth of depression. try to imagine a football game without one of t~e most important and exciting components. T ry to picture the dull crowd lacking in spirit and enthusiasm. The players and c,:oaches are present. The fans are packed in their seats. But one vital aspect of the game is still absent. Only one addition can put the game back into the spodightwhere so many loyal fans flock to join in on the emotiot: - the cheerleaders . To many dedicated athletes and sports fans . the cheerleaders at football and basketball games are as American as apple pie. Not only are they a pleasant and enjoyable means of adding spice and excitement to the game, but they can easily be considered a necessity. In otder to fulfill this imaginary and hypothetical void. a talented group of 13 young women were assembled to lead the Bison teams and fans to victory. Through intense practices and workouts, the Bison cheerleaders have prepared themselves and have proven to be up for the task at hand. While the fall signaled the beginning of another season of Bison athletics, it also signaled a new beginning for the Bison cheerleaders. Kellee Blickenstaffwas named the new sponsor for the squad. "Kellee has a lot of good connections and knows how to get things done." Paige Fairley. junior, said. "She puts a lot of work and effort into her job to make us better at what we do." W ith Blickenstaff in her first year as cheerleader sponsor, the squad reverted to an old practice in which one squad cheered at both football and basketball games. "Since 1983 the cheerleaders were divided into two separate squads that performed at one SpOrt," Blickenstaff said. "We have an experienced group of girls that work hard to boost school spitit at both football and basketball [games]." While cheering for both SpOrts may require. more practice and training, the Bison cheerleaders recognized the advantages to the two-spore cheering season, according to Kerri Kaegi. captain. "It takes a lot of time and dedication to chee r at both SPOrtS," Kaegi said. "Our main purpose is to support the teams, and doing both is a great way to do juSt that. " Alongwith the abili ty to boost crowd support and spirit for the players, returning members acknowledged and appreciated the abili ty to build on the fundamentals of cheerleading that were taught in the fall. "We used to have to learn new things to catch the new girls up fot each SpOrt," Carla Redd, senior, said. "With one squad we can continue to build on things we learned early in the school year. This allowed us to improve at a faster pace and learn more things." To some, the amount of time and dedication a cheerleader puts int~ her job seems minimal. But something many people do not realize is the intense training and preparation completed by the Bison cheerleaders before the athletic season even begins. "The girls arrive on campus a week before the rest of the student body," Blickenstaff said. "They do everything from learn ing cheers and routines to liftingweights and running for conditioning. The girls have to be in great shape when the season rolls around. " As a reward for the hard work and time put forth by the squad, "WE HAVE AN EXPERIENCED GROUP OF GIRLS THAT WORK HARD TO BOOST SCHOOL SPIRIT AT BOTH FOOTBALL AND BASKETBALL [GAMES]." -KELLEE BLICKENSTAFF, SPONSOR Blickenstaff is in the early stages of entering the squad into cheerleading competitions held with other schools. "This would be a great way for us to gain awareness of and recognition for the sport of cheerleading," Kaegi said. "People don ' t recognize it for being the sport that it is, and this would be a great way to show what goes into cheering." "For us to become a competition squad would be a great way to get more girls interested in cheering at Harding," Fairly said. "We have a large and experienced group that could do really well at a competition. " The squad was also given the opportuni ty to interact with some children from the Sunshine School. "The girls shared their time and energy with the kids by playing baseball , helping with ctafts and other activities." Blickenstaffsaid. "The kids really enjoyed the time they spent with the group. " "I played baseball with the children for most of the time," Redd said. "We had a lotoffun and it made me feel good to be someone they could look up to ." - Brian Jobe Cheerleaders 211
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