More cheering in store for weekend
The Prairie Capital Center in Springfield will be a happening place this weekend, when as many as 130 cheerleading teams descend on the arena for the Illinois Cheerleading Coaches Association state championships.
Of those, 25 teams from the North, Northwest and West suburbs have qualified, including varsity teams --small, medium, large and coed high school squads -- which compete today, with junior varsity and junior high school teams taking the floor on Sunday.
The competition comes on the heels of the Illinois High School Association's state tournament, held last weekend in Bloomington, which drew roughly the same number of high school teams.
"The ICCA has been around a lot longer," says Tiffany Taylor, coach of the Round Lake High School cheerleaders. "We all know the organization, and still want to compete with them."
Both the IHSA and ICCA follow guidelines established National Federation of State High School Associations Spirit Rule Book and consequently score the routines the same way.
They count everything from appearance to timing and execution on jumps to difficulty of stunts and pyramids.
New this year to the competition is the "game cheer" division, which judges teams on formations, enthusiasm, motions and creative routines, and not on stunts and tumbling.
"We added that division to get more teams involved," said Joanna Enoch, ICCA board member.
One other difference is with coed teams. Squads that have even just one boy must compete in the coed division in the IHSA, while with the ICCA, they need a minimum of two boys to be considered a coed squad.
Consequently, Streamwood High School which has only one boy on its team, will go up against other large varsity schools on today after finishing 10th at state last weekend in the IHSA's coed division.
The ICCA has been in existence for 25 years, and formed in order to regulate cheerleading as a competitive sport, including forming a state series, and certifying its coaches.
Three years ago, when the IHSA sanctioned cheerleading as one of its competitive sports and set up its own series of regionals and sectionals leading to its state championships, it came as a victory for all those involved with cheerleading, Enoch said.
"We were thrilled when they took it over, but for them, it's just one of a number of sports," Enoch said. "With us, we're all about cheerleading."
ICCA championships
Today's performers
Maine West LV, 9:50 a.m. Streamwood LV, 10 a.m. Round Lake GC, 10:05 a.m. Bartlett LV, 10:35 a.m. Waubonsie Valley LV, 10:25 a.m. Benet Academy LV, 11:35 a.m. St. Viator LV, 11:45 a.m. Geneva LV, 12:05 p.m. St. Charles North LV, 12:15 p.m. Glenbard North LV, 12:25 p.m. Wheaton-Warrenville South LV, 12:35 p.m. Bolingbrook LV, 12:55 p.m. Glenbard West LV, 1:50 p.m. Marian Catholic LV, 2:05 p.m. South Elgin CE, 2:15 p.m.
LV = Large varsity division GC = Game cheer division CE = Coed varsity division
Sunday's performers
St. Charles North SJV, 11:05 a.m. Benet Academy SJV, 12:15 p.m. St. Mary's SJH (Buffalo Grove), 1 p.m.* Addison Trail SJV, 1:25 p.m. St. James SJH (Arlington Heights), 1:50 p.m. Glenbard North LJV, 1:55 p.m. St. Viator LJV, 2:15 p.m. Lake Zurich LJV, 2:25 p.m. St. Mary's LJH (Buffalo Grove), 3 p.m.* Grayslake Central LJV, 3:15 p.m. H.D. Jacobs LJV, 3:25 p.m.
LJV/SJV = Large/small junior varsity division LJH/SJH = Large/small junior high division *St. Mary's LJH is 7th/8th graders; SJH is 5th/6th.
Source: ICCA web site