Neuqua Valley High School’s varsity cheer team had even more reason to cheer Saturday after taking third place in the Illinois High School Association competitive cheerleading state series at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum in Bloomington.
“This team is just mentally tough and they don’t give up,” Neuqua Coach Kathy Tichelbaut said. “They have the skills, they have the heart, they just had to trust what they practice and believe in themselves. They did everything we asked of them today. They delivered.”
It is the third consecutive year the south Naperville high school has earned a spot on the podium, placing third last year and second in 2014.
“We are so excited,” Assistant Coach Brandon McGhee said. “We have a line in our cheer that says, ‘Third time is a charm, we are here to stay.’ To medal three times in a row is really, really tough. We have set a new standard for our program.”
More than 300 teams compete throughout the cheer season, and the top 25 teams advance to the state series in each of the four categories: small, medium and large school and coed division. Neuqua qualified in the large school division and Metea Valley qualified in the coed division.
After the preliminary round Feb. 5, Neuqua was in ninth place and Metea in 10th place in their respective categories.
“We had the performance of our lives today,” Neuqua senior Madeline Lendino said. “That feeling we had when we were coming off the floor was like winning to us and to get third place made it so much better. It was awesome.”
Neuqua Valley Principal Bob McBride said he wasn’t surprised to see the Wildcats rise to the occasion.
“It is no surprise that Neuqua cheer mounted one of the biggest state competition comebacks ever today, moving from ninth yesterday to third today,” McBride said. “Their grit, determination, skill and athleticism prevailed, earning them Neuqua’s 37th Illinois High School Association trophy.”
But along with the hardware, McBride said, the team triumphed in other ways.
“Most importantly, their coaches have built a team where team members care about each other and succeed together,” he said. “This was a team triumph that represents the very best in our athletes, school and community.
Lendino, 17, shared the sentiment.
“This team is the best team I have been on,” Lendino said. “We all get along and everyone respects each other, and I think that is really a key factor in why we did so well this season.”
Other winners in the large school division included Joliet West in first place and Providence Catholic in second.
In the coed division, Metea finished in seventh place. The top three finishers were Buffalo Grove, Belvidere North and Niles North.
For Metea Valley coaches and husband and wife team Lisa and Ryan Braheny, returning to the state series for the fourth consecutive year is a major accomplishment for their program.
“To have a young team and a relatively new program – and be able to accomplish that – is very exciting for us,” Lisa Braheny said. “This team has worked incredibly hard to get where they are and we are so proud of them.”
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Braheny said the Mustang team spends countless hours at practice without a complaint.
“They only had three days off the whole month of January practicing, competing and cheering at games,” said the coach. “They make so many sacrifices to help this team be successful and it has shown in their performance. They are a great group of student athletes and I am honored to be their coach.”
Jane Donahue is a freelance writer for the Naperville Sun.