In 2008, Apex Cougars Mitey Mite Coach Melinda Allen and her daughter, Samantha, took a road trip on the day after Thanksgiving. They drove to Charlotte to watch the Mid-South Regional Cheer Competition. Apex Sports Authority had some teams in the field. The Apex Cougars Jr. Pee Wee girls competing that day had taken third place in the local competition, just squeaking into the regionals, and finished outside of the announced finishers. Only the top two teams at each level advance to national competition. Coach Allen took notes and stated with some confidence that her team was “going to Disney World in 2009.”

One year later, her words proved prophetic as she exchanged tearful hugs with her assistants and her girls. The Apex Cougars Jr. Pee Wee cheer team took first place in the Mid-South Regionals on Friday. It was not an easy road.

Only two girls returned from the 2008 team; the majority of the team having “aged up” to the Midget level. There were new girls with no prior cheer experience. There were younger girls, from the Mitey Mite age group, who opted to move up “to be with Coach Melinda.” More than half the team was made up of 3rd and 4th graders. Traditionally Jr. Pee Wee competitors are 5th graders. Going into the season they were young, inexperienced and unfamiliar with each other. As the season comes to a close, they are champions.

The JPW Cougars had put together a flawless routine in the local competition back in October. Could their good fortune continue? It wouldn’t have appeared so when the competition schedule was announced. The Cougars were first on the floor. In any event involving judging, going first comes with the added worry of judges saving the best marks for “later”. At least that was the buzz among the parents in attendance. The young ladies weren’t fazed in the least. Once again they performed to near perfection, including some additional twists and turns they’ve only recently added.

The first place JPW team features Samantha Allen, Sierra Batdorff, Kami Beardsley, Jori Beth Fox, Celeste Geiser, Lindsay Hayden, Mikayla Kidd, Reghan Robtoy, Cai Shengulette, Cassidy Wentz and Ashley Winefordner. Joining Melinda Allen on the coaching staff are Trisha Batdorff, Debbie Robtoy and Lori Wentz. Accompanying the JPW Apex Cougars on the trip to Florida will be the runners up, the Oak Ridge Colts from the Greensboro, NC area. The local Pop Warner organization (Consolidated Football Federation) was also well represented at regional competition at the JPW level by the Wake Forest Titans and the Garner Trojans. The Pop Warner Mid-South region is comprised of football and cheer associations from Alabama, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia. While Coach Allen was taking notes at the 2008 regionals, Midget Head Coach Stacey Cartrette was on the edge of the mat watching her team. The 2008 Midget girls finished 4th at regionals after a very strong national run (5th place) in 2007. Coming into this year Coach Cartrette and assistant Terri Levers had to be concerned when they realized they had 19 girls on their roster, ranging in age from 11 to 15. That’s a lot of girls with a wide range of skills and potentially widely varying levels of maturity. One nice thing in their favor: they were experienced. These young ladies were disappointed at the local competition in October. They’d put together a pretty good routine but were beaten out for top honors by the Capital City Steelers. Fortunately, the top 3 teams from local competition advance to regionals so the door to redemption remained open. The Cougars walked through and slammed it shut behind them. Ashley Athan, Allison Britt, Erin Davenport, Lizzie Davis, Bailey Hester, Jada Johnson, Katherine Kastl, Keelea Krear, Stefani Levers, Samantha Levers, Kelly Monahan, Becky Shaffer, Rachel Smith, Danielle Smith, Chasen Stephenson, Carly Stiver, Taylor Stokes, Coralis Vega and Ashley Winkler, you’ve just finished first in the 2009 Mid-South Cheer and Dance Regionals. What’s next? “We’re going to Disney World!” This time the Capital City Steelers finished second. They too will be travelling to Disney World. ASA Cheer Commissioner Debby Hester, asked about how it felt to put not one but two teams into the national finals, both with first place finishes, had this to say “We’ve had a great season this year and are focusing now on representing ASA and our town well in Florida next week. As for the future and continued success with ASA Cheer, we hope we can continue to grow our program. It takes time and dedication from many, many volunteers but the rewards for our efforts are huge! We offer young ladies the opportunities to learn the fundamentals of cheer regardless of skill level. We offer young ladies a program that encourages teamwork and respect. That is where we earn our greatest success as an organization!” Ecstatic Cheer Mom (daughter Bailey cheers on the Midget squad) Debby Hester added this: “Each one of our girls has given more than 100% to cheer at games and has represented our association so well all season and then to hear both squads called out for 1st place on Friday was truly amazing! As the mother of one of the cheerleaders and as the commissioner of the ASA cheer program, I was so proud!” Apex Sports Authority President Jonathan Ressler spoke for the community saying “We are extremely proud of our Jr. Pee Wee and Midget Cheerleaders for their accomplishments at the Pop Warner Regionals. They are truly role models to all of our athletes and all of the members of ASA. Regardless of how they finish in the National Finals in Orlando, these ladies are already champions. ” Next week will mark the end of a wonderful 2009 season for these girls. The JPW team will compete on Monday, December 7 and the Midgets will compete on Friday, December 11. ASA Assistant Cheer Commissioner Diane Smith offers that “this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for these young ladies. They and their coaches and their families have worked very hard and sacrificed a lot since the season started on August 1st. Congratulations to all.” ASA is fortunate in that many of these cheerleaders are eligible to return next year and they’ll join girls rising from the instructional levels and newcomers to the program to establish a new dynamic for 2010. Commissioner Hester and Assistant Commissioner Smith welcome “anyone interested in cheerleading to join our organization. It is a great way to learn cheer skills in an environment that focuses on working as a team and cheering for football teams/players. Our program does not focus solely on competitive cheer, it is a fun program to be a part of! “ Apex Sports Authority is a 100 percent volunteer organization that sponsors youth football, cheerleading, lacrosse and wrestling programs. For more information about these programs and how you can become involved, please visit http://www.apexsportsauthority.com.