CHEER

The HU cheer team packed resilience, growth and grit into a demanding weekend at the Wildcat Invitational, hosted by Indiana Wesleyan in Marion, Indiana.

Competing in three competitions over two days, the Foresters showed steady progress and mental toughness as they battled through adversity and finished the weekend stronger than they started.

HU opened Friday with a confident performance highlighted by sharp facials and beautiful tumbling passes. The routine carried strong momentum until a pyramid fall at the end resulted in a 1.25 deduction. Despite the setback, the team regrouped quickly and closed with a strong, energized dance section to post a 65.7.

Saturday brought renewed focus.

In their first performance of the day, the Foresters cleaned up the pyramid and hit zero with no deductions while showcasing improved execution across the routine. A slight timing issue in jumps kept the performance from being flawless, and while judges were looking for more overall energy and performance quality, HU earned a 64.7 for their clean effort.

The final routine of the weekend included a small group stunt fall, but the rest of the performance was executed smoothly. More importantly, the team demonstrated noticeable growth in confidence, energy and composure on the mat. The Foresters closed the weekend with a 64.4, leaving encouraged by their upward trajectory despite judges again pushing for more performance intensity.

Head Coach Shawnna Esque praised her team’s mindset throughout the grind.

“The team truly pushed through this weekend. Competing in three competitions over two days is tough, but they persevered. After the pyramid fall, they fought hard to come back stronger and continued to work through mental blocks to improve their performance. They showed heart and passion on the mat, and that means more to me than the numbers on the score sheets.”

The Foresters now turn their attention to the Crusader Classic at Madonna University this weekend, where they will face several new opponents, including teams from the WHAC. Competition begins at 11:00 a.m., with HU scheduled to perform at approximately 1:50 p.m.

FINAL TEAM STANDINGS
Session One – IWU (92), Taylor (87.6), Spring Arbor (82.1), Cumberlands (81), Florida Memorial (80.2), HU (65.7)
Session Two – Cumberlands (89.4), IWU (88.5), Spring Arbor (88.2), Taylor (87.25), Florida Memorial (85.6), Cumberland (84.7), Marian (81.4), Bethel (76.6), Saint Francis (74.8), HU (64.7)
Session Three – IWU (93.4), Taylor (86.3), Cumberland (85.2), Bethel (77),Saint Francis (77), HU (64.4)