2022 state spirit: Final six champions crowned in pom, jazz, and hip-hop
DENVER — A jam packed weekend of Colorado high school spirit competition concluded Saturday night, as six more teams earned some hardware on the final day of the 2022 state spirit championships at the Denver Coliseum.
Competing on the final day were the 2A, 3A, 4A and 5A poms divisions, as well as the unclassified hip-hop and jazz competitions.
4A & 5A Poms
The Bruins are back on top of the 5A pom division, as they scored a 90.95 to take home the title. After finishing runner-up the last two seasons to Rock Canyon, CC now adds its ninth poms title, and its first since 2019.
“I’m really exciting. I’m really, really, really proud,” Alex Limberis said. “These girls have put in the work every single day since the start of this season and I’m just really proud of them that all that work paid off and they were rewarded for this strong character, their strong work ethic and their strong dancing.”
The former back-to-back champs, Rock Canyon, took second this time around with a 90.225. Following them were Regis Jesuit in third, Grandview in fourth, ThunderRidge in fifth, and Castle View in sixth.
A defending champ was crowned in 4A, as Roosevelt took the gold with an 89.4. After winning their first spirit title in program history last year, the Roughriders wasted little time in adding a second.
“It’s so amazing. We come from such a small town that even before I was coaching, I didn’t even know where it was,” Roosevelt head coach Brittany Reddy said. “These girls have put in so many hours of work and they are hungry. To be able to go back-to-back is just an amazing dream. Our football team won state last week and they’re having a parade on the 18th. Our athletic director already said, ‘Alright, you guys are in that parade too.’ It’s really cool to come together in our small town and support all athletics.”
Finishing runner-up for the second year in a row were the Erie Tigers with an 88.425. That marks two second-place finishes on the weekend after taking second in co-ed cheer last night. Rounding out the finalists in 4A were Holy Family in third, Standley Lake in fourth, Evergreen in fifth, and Riverdale Ridge in sixth.
2A & 3A Poms
Another team got back to the summit in 3A, as the University Bulldogs took home the gold hardware with a final score of 84.75. After finishing runner-up to Aspen last season, they took home their fifth pom title all-time, and sixth spirit title in program history.
“I have five seniors of the team who have gone through wins and losses and hard times,” University coach Gina Shepard said. “And we had COVID, which was a damper in general for their high school experience. This means a lot to them. They worked really hard all year and we worked on our mental skills, so they looked really confident on and off the floor today.”
Meanwhile, the defending champs Aspen, who were the only other finalist, finished right behind with an 82.825.
The team that has finished third to those two teams the last three seasons in 3A, the SkyView Academy Hawks, were in a new classification this season, and took home the 2A title. It is the first spirit championship in program history. They scored a 74.70 in the finals.
“This is absolutley crazy,” Hawks senior Natalie Moser said. “I’ve been working at it since my freshman year and I was really hoping I was giong to pull through senior year. We did and I’m really proud we can walk around with that title now. It felt spectacular. It felt unreal. I’m still speechless and I feel like it’s going to set in later and I’m going to cry.”
The defending 2A pom champs, Sanford, took second this time around. They scored a 70.925 as the only other 2A finalist.
Hip-Hop & Jazz
Eaglecrest, who has the most spirit titles of any school in state history, added to their trophy case with another hip-hop title. The Raptors went back-to-back after scoring a big 92.90 in the finals. The Raptors set the standard for spirit in the state with 14 all-time, with this their third in hip-hop.
Eaglecrest will now represent Team USA in the junior hip-hop division at the in the International Cheer Union competition in March.
“Winning a state champ for the second year just gives us motivation and sets us up for success for the rest of the season,” Eaglecrest senior Caelyn Jackson said. “It just builds off our strength from year to year. We always try to be better than we were the year before and it just helps make our bond as a team way stronger.”
The runner-up were the Broomfield Eagles, who totaled an 89.25. It was an improvement on their third-place finish last season. Rounding out the finalists were Arapahoe in third, Fruita Monument in fourth, Smoky Hill in fifth, and the defending runners-up Prairie View in sixth.
Finally, the jazz final had familiar faces in Cherokee Trail and Mountain Vista. CT and MV have been the top-two teams each of the last four jazz competitions, with CT winning two of last three.
The Cougars did it again, as they captured their third in the last four, barely edging out Mountain Vista, 90.375 to 89.325. The Golden Eagles were unable to add to their 11 spirit titles all-time, which is fourth-most of any team all-time.
“This is our first back-to-back in program history and to be honest, we were not expecting it,” Cherokee Trail head coach Mia Brown said. “It definitely kind of felt like a first win for us. I’m very happy, very satisfied with their performance and also incredibly blessed and honored.”
