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After two straight years of runner-up finishes, Coral Springs Charter’s cheerleading team finally pulled through, winning in the Class 1A small non-tumbling division on Sunday for its first state title.
The Panthers joined three other Broward County high school teams to come away with state titles on the final day of the FHSAA competitive cheerleading state championships.
“It’s been three years in the making,” said Emonii Word, coach for Coral Springs Charter, which beat out five other teams for the top spot. “I was just so happy that they did their best and left the floor with no what-ifs.”
Stranahan won in the 1A large non-tumbling division for its second competitive cheerleading state title in school history and first since 2014. It edged out four teams in Sunday’s finals in Gainesville.
Dillard won its second state title in three years by landing top honors in the 2A large non-tumbling division. Blanche Ely, which advanced to the finals after a second-place finish in the semifinals earlier in the day, took third place overall.
Coral Glades won the Class 2A extra large non-tumbling division when it edged fellow Broward team Piper in a two-team final. The state title is Coral Glades’ fourth in school history and first since 2014.
Wellington was Palm Beach County’s sole champion as the Warriors won a state title in the Class 2A medium non-tumbling division. Jupiter, Seminole Ridge and King’s Academy took runnerup honors in their respective divisions.
Piper was the only Broward team to finish runner-up, placing second behind Coral Glades.
Coral Springs, which was the defending back-to-back state champion in the 2A small nontumbling division, finished in third place Sunday.
Other state qualifiers competing in Gainesville included:
From Class 2A — Blanche Ely, which took third place in the large non-tumbling division; Archbishop McCarthy (4th, medium non-tumbling); West Boca (6th, small division); and Boca Raton (6th, large); in Class 1A — Chaminade-Madonna (4th, medium non-tumbling), Suncoast (5th, large non-tumbling).