Dade Christian School’s cheerleading program, which includes elementary, junior varsity and varsity teams, made their annual trip to FCC (Fellowship of Christian Cheerleading) Nationals in Orlando in early January.
Each team had one goal in mind...for the elementary and junior varsity, it was to win a national title...and for the varsity, it was to become three-peat National champions.
“Each team had rigorous practice almost every day and they were all determined to win a title this year,” said elementary coach Stephanie Andrade.
After the preliminary round, all three team were ranked first. Performing in the final round against fierce competition, each team came out on top and won first place. They all returned as National champions sporting their National Champion jackets and their oversized trophies.
These teams proved that although they may be small teams (about 10-12 girls on each team), they can still each big goals. “Sometimes people underestimate us because we have smaller teams, so they don’t expect much from us,” said varsity captain Amanda DeCoro. The varsity girls and head coach Jennifer Martinez are excited to see what the rest of the season has in store for them.