Another title for West Warwick
Wizards pick up third straight state crown
PROVIDENCE — The West Warwick cheerleading dynasty isn’t an accident or a stroke of luck.
Cheerleading is what the Wizards do. They expect to win but the athletes who participate know that titles aren’t going to be handed to them. It takes work — and work is what West Warwick does best.
“When we get to the end of a routine, we’re all in tears because we’ve all pushed through the whole season for each other,” West Warwick senior Mackenzie Carreira said. “We just do everything for one another.”
In the biggest event of the 2023-24 competitive cheer season, West Warwick showed it’s more than just talk. Competing in the co-ed division at the Providence Career and Technical Academy on Saturday, the Wizards put their nerves aside, went out and did a routine they could do with their eyes closed. They felt good about how it went afterward and then felt better when awards were handed out as West Warwick’s 92.30 score defeated La Salle by 0.60 for both the CoEd and State Championship title.
“It’s genuinely the best feeling in the world. I’ve been doing this for 12 years and it just gets better and better each time,” Carreira said. “Being a senior this time around, it makes it so much different and so much more heartfelt.”
West Warwick knew where its competition was. La Salle has won its fair share of titles — the schools are now tied all-time with 14 — and was the runner-up last season.
There’s no defense in cheer, so the Wizards weren’t worried about what the Rams could do. Their only concern was nailing their routine.
“The thing with cheer is you have two minutes and 30 seconds to put it all out on the mat,” Carreira said. “There’s no do-overs, there’s no can we go again. You have to give it your all for that 2:30.
“It’s completely in the judges’ hands, so you have to give it your all because you don’t know how it’s going to go.”
It went well. West Warwick shared hugs as a team after its routine, then waited for the awards ceremony to find out how well it did. When La Salle was announced as the runner-up in co-ed, the Wizards knew what had happened.
Next, West Warwick had to wait for the other division champs to be announced. When La Salle was announced as the runner-up for the state title, the Wizards knew they had won the school’s third straight state championship.
“As a senior this year, it’s just a surreal feeling,” Carreira said. “All that hard work you put in the entire season, all those hard practices, they all just fade away. You just gave it your all at states and it’s such a surreal feeling.”
While the Wizards’ win over the Rams was close, it wasn’t the closest win of the afternoon.
In Division IV, defending champ North Smithfield scored an 80.00, which put it in a tie with Achievement First. Because the Northmen earned more fundamental points, they were named the D-IV champs for the second straight year.
Pawtucket was also a repeat champion. Last year, it won its first title as a Shea/Tolman collective — the
Tigers had won four Division I titles previously — and went into Saturday’s meet confident about winning a second straight crown.
That confidence grew after nailing its routine and, when East Providence was announced as runner-up in Division I, Pawtucket knew it had the title won.
“It’s a very overwhelming feeling, but it’s worth it. It’s relieving to know all the hard work really paid off because it was very difficult and scary,” Pawtucket’s Madasyn Bibby said. “It’s a mindset. You have to do it with purpose.”
Pawtucket’s uniforms might have been the most sparkly at the event, but an argument could be made that that title belonged to Ponaganset.
After winning the last Division III championships, the Chieftains walked into the PCTA as favorites and showed why with their routine. The girls seemed nervous as scores were being announced, but after Lincoln was named the second-place team, the team took a collective breath before screaming as loud as possible when it was named D-III champion.
“We were definitely pretty shocked. The competition was really hard,” Ponaganset’s Eve Dexter said. “Usually, if we have a reaction, we can tell we did pretty good. Then we go around and ask if we hit everything.”
The Chieftains felt like they did, but the routine wasn’t the hardest part of the afternoon. Waiting for the announcement was.
“I just say, ‘Please, please, please’ over and over again and it works,” Dexter said.
While all the celebrations featured screams of joy, Pilgrim’s championship celebration was filled with the most tears. The Patriots were runners-up in last year’s Division II championship and the goal this season was simple — win a title.
Pilgrim put it all together when it mattered most and, coming off the mat, its athletes were emotional. The Patriots knew how well they performed and when it came time for awards, they let out every ounce of emotion after winning the program’s first title.
“All four years, we have been just so close, so the one year we pushed our bodies to the absolute fullest, it’s just so incredible and I’m proud of everyone on my team,” Pilgrim’s Paige Leland said. “I can’t even put into words how happy I am right now.
“It’s my senior year and we had this one saying — ‘WWTC — We Want That Crown,’ “Leland said, showing off a tiny crown she was holding in her right hand. “We got that crown.”