Now introducing… the Wakefield stunt team. With a new coach, these sixteen Wolverines have been consistently working alongside each other for five weeks, always putting in their best efforts. The girls have competed in various locations working to improve their skills as the season progresses. 

Jacara Poole is a social studies teacher and the new coach for the stunt team, starting just a few weeks ago. She has been cheering for several years and wants to continue to be a part of the community.

“Stunt takes all the competitive parts of cheerleading and puts them into a competitive sport,” Poole said. “There are six routines and three different categories, so every day we fix the levels we already have and work on the ones to come.”

The three-hour practices held in the small gym typically follow a steady schedule, incorporating numerous drills to get the hard-working girls ready to improve their technique and make the whole routine flow. 

“Practices consist of a team warmup [first] and then we will run through the level one jumps and tumbling [in order to] perfect everything,” Sheniya Williams, a sophomore and captain of the stunt team said. “Then we will do stunting and perfect that and do more routines.”

These athletes intend to reach certain levels in all components of this sport, including tumbling, jump and stunt. Aisha Augustin is a freshman on the stunt team who elaborates more on the different levels of stunt. 

“We want to get up to level four or five in all elements [and] for each level, there is a jump and tumbling category,” Augustin said. “There are [also] two stunting categories: pyramid and tossing, and partner stunts; you do all the routines and partner stunts first and whatever level you can achieve, you go against the opposing team.”

During the competitions, the two teams perform their routines right next to each other on the same mat and get deductions based on their techniques. The final score and point is then given to one of the teams in the end. The girls have already competed in several locations, and are further preparing for upcoming ones. 

“We have competed against Heritage, Millbrook, Green Hope and Sanderson,” Augustin said. 

Apart from the competition, the girls grow closer through practices and scrimmages. Being on the stunt team requires a lot of trust within the team, and these girls have created a strong bond. Autumn Forsythe is a freshman and enjoys the friendships she has made with her teammates. 

“The bus rides there and going to the school [are very fun,] and the girls in general [are fun as well,]” Forsythe said. “We always have a positive attitude even if we are not winning because it is our first year.”