Peterson ready to roar at Wallace State
The Peterson household has had its share of college signing day ceremonies and they got to experience one more last Monday as Gracelyn put her name on paperwork to extend her cheerleading career to Wallace State in Hanceville, Ala.
The Gordon Lee senior, who practically grew up on the sidelines, said she was a little anxious about attending college away from home. However, she is otherwise excited about her future with the Lions competition squad and confident in knowing that she’s been preparing for it for most of her life.
“(Wallace State) is very small, like Chickamauga,” she explained. “We talked to a few of the cheerleaders when I went on my visit and they were very nice and I feel like I fit in with them. It just seems like a good place to go.”
Wallace State cheer coach Kevin Yates, a WS graduate and cheer alum who went to on win two UCA national titles at Morehead State in Kentucky in the early 2000’s, said he was thrilled to have Peterson joining the roster because of her attitude and versatility.
“When I talk to kids, I like that eye contact and that interaction,” he said, explaining that Peterson had first connected with the program through social media. “I want to know where she stands and with Wallace State being a junior college, I know we’re only going to have them for about two years. She and her mom came down and she told
me what her plans were and what she wanted to do. My job as a coach is, No. 1, her education, and No. 2 is her sport.”
Yates said Peterson would be attending Wallace State on a full cheerleading/athletic scholarship.
“Hopefully she’ll stay with us for
those two years and get her associate’s degree,” he continued. “Then, wherever she wants to transfer after that, I can help her get there.
“One thing that sold me on her is her stunting. Just like in baseball, cheerleading has different positions. When I asked her which position
she was, she said ‘I’m a main base, but I’ll do whatever you want me to do.’ That’s what really stood out to me about her. As a coach, that’s what you want. You want athletes that are going to be versatile and do what’s best for the team to help us reach our goals. As a college cheerleading team, our goal is Nationals and competing two days there, prelims and finals.”
Peterson said she hopes to get the Lions back to the top and win UCA national championships to go with the ones the program earned in 2004 and 2006. Wallace State also has two UCA national runnerup finishes.
“I think I’ll bring leadership and be a good strong base for them,” she said.
Peterson was a part of a Gordon Lee program that won two GHSA Class A Public sectional and state titles in 2020 and 2021. The past two seasons, in Class 3A, Gordon Lee captured back-to-back Region 6 crowns and finished third at state both times.
Gordon Lee head cheer coach Kelley Whitman said Peterson had been an integral part of the squad’s success.
“She’s gifted in all aspects of cheerleading, especially stunting,” Whitman said. “She’s the girl you want under every stunt. If you could clone her and put her under every stunt group, you would because she will do whatever she has to do to make sure (the formation) stays up.
“(Wallace State) is getting a fantastic person too. They’re getting a leader, on and off the mat, and getting someone who leads by example. She doesn’t have to use her voice and she hardly ever raises her voice. She just shows her teammates what needs to be done and how to do it. That’s probably her best asset.”
Peterson plans to study elementary school education.