Team books a place with standout camp, but trip doubtful

The Juanita cheerleading team is already having a banner year — and school doesn’t start for over a month. With a stellar performance at a camp earlier this month, the cheer squad booked its place in a half-time show at the NFL Pro Bowl in Hawaii next February.

Juanita earned a number of first place trophies at the Universal Cheerleaders Association camp, leading to the Pro Bowl invitation. The camp was held at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma from July 7-10. The Pro Bowl, the NFL’s version of an all-star game, is Feb. 8 in Honolulu, Hawaii.

While the team is excited about the possibility of cheering at the game, getting there poses some problems. The trip cost is $1,100 per competitor plus air fare, something the team might not be able to afford. Each cheerleader already pays $800 for a uniform to be on the squad.

“It’s a really big accomplishment that we even got asked to go,” said Dani Stuckenschneider, a senior co-captain of the team. “We’re going to sit down as a team and decided if we are going to try to go or not. It would be pretty sweet.”

Juanita coach Jeni Rose is hard at work trying to figure out how to make the trip a reality: funding could come from corporate sponsors or fundraisers.

“It’s really awesome,” Rose said. “But right now it doesn’t look like it’s within our reach.”

Even without the Pro Bowl trip, the season looks bright for the team. Rose said the group came together during the summer practices and camps. “They become a team at camp,” Rose said.

Stuckenschneider said her biggest goal as senior captain is getting the team to state.

“I can already tell that we’re going to compete this year,” she said. “The girls are really dedicated. There’s no complaining. They’re in it to win it.”

Teams can qualify for state by scoring high at one of 10 WIAA state qualifier events. The state competition is on Jan. 24 at the Everett Event Center. Stuckenschneider said even if the team qualifies for state at the first event, she’d like to compete in at least two or three so the younger members can get accustomed to the competition.

“When you get out there, there’s a lot of adrenaline and stage fright,” she said. “You have to get used to how it feels and how you’re judged and everything like that.”

The Juanita cheer team practices year-round. During the summer the team meets Monday through Thursday for two hours each day. As the competition season nears (November), the team will practice up to five times per week on top of schoolwork and other cheerleading duties like football, basketball and wrestling events.

“It’s absolutely year-round,” Rose said. “It never stops … They’re involved with everything.”

Entering her third season coaching at Juanita, Rose welcomed 10 new girls to the team this year, but she’s not worried about the inexperience.

“These girls are going to be amazing to watch when competition season comes,” she said.