El Dorado cheer headed to Nationals
El Dorado will return to Orlando to compete in the 2023 National High School Cheer Championship, hosted by Universal Cheer Association at ESPN Wide World of Sports.
El Dorado finished eighth in the nation last year. There will be some changes this year, however, including a new division - D1 Super Varsity Non-Tumbling Game Day.
“We are in a different division this year since we have a boy so that will be different,” said Coach Tab Bledsoe. “Hopefully we will fix the silly mistakes we made last year and get no deductions this year and move up in the ranks.”
The D1 division features high schools with 1,300 or more students. El Dorado has 1,303 enrolled.
“It's safe to say we will be the smallest school in our division,” said Bledsoe.
The division will have 31 teams, including three state champions - Alamo Heights (Texas), Davies County (Kentucky) and El Dorado, which is another change from last year, when the Lady Wildcats were coming off a disappointing final round performance at the state meet.
“Last year they had a chip on their shoulder and something to prove, which really I think made them more nervous than anything. That's probably why we made silly mistakes,” Bledsoe said. “This year they know what they are capable of and have been chasing perfection all season long so now we just have to finish. We know what we have to do and if they are confident in themselves they will go out and do great things.”
There are 15 states represented in El Dorado's division - Arkansas, New Jersey, Kansas, Arizona, Colorado, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New York, Kentucky, California, Washington, Texas, Alabama, and Utah.
“Our goal remains the same chase perfection,” said Bledsoe. “If we go and do our best, we stand a real shot to bring home some hardware. I guess we will take our chunk of wood, knock on it and hope for the best. I know they have been working so hard.”
El Dorado will have to advance through three rounds to be one of nine teams to qualify for the finals.
The Lady Wildcats made history with their first state title in December. Since then, the community showed its appreciation in the fundraising for rings.
Bledsoe said this year's squad deserved their spoils of victory. She's hopeful it can end the season on, yet, another high note.
“This is by far the hardest working group of athletes I have ever coached,” she said. “They fix things (by) watching film on their own before I even catch the mistakes most of the time. They are just so driven to be their absolute best.
“The community has been so supportive. We raised all our funds for our rings before we got back from Christmas break. Talk about an outpouring of support.”
The three-day competition begins Feb. 10.