The anticipation has been building for the Commerce High School competitive cheerleaders — past and present — since the new high school became a reality.
Coach Dianne Cotrell said she regularly pauses on the second level of the school’s gymnasium after practice. The ground floor is often empty, yet she imagines the volume of spirit that will finally take over the facility at 9 a.m. on Saturday.
“This is always something I wanted to do before I retired,” she said. “It’s a dream.”
Twenty-five teams will arrive to CHS ready to warm up and compete in various categories, ranging from middle school and junior varsity to the state’s highest classification, AAAAA.There also will be co-ed teams vying for top honors at the meet, which is always popular, volunteers said.
As part of the event, organizers plan to formally recognize as many alumni as possible, Cotrell said.
More than 60 former cheerleaders, their parents and even some grandparents are expected to be at the meet to support the Cheer Tigers and also to volunteer as event workers.
School leaders are preparing for large crowds given the success of the Tiger program. While the school has developed a reputation for producing some of the state’s best teams since the program’s creation nearly 15 years ago, many people in the community have not had the chance to see the team perform.
People who arrive unfamiliar with competitive cheerleading are being warned, however, that the program times may not be exact and will depend on the flow of judging, volunteers said.
Such was the case at CHS’s first meet last week at Mill Creek in Braselton, where judges took their time with this year’s new scoring sheets.
Commerce went on about an hour behind schedule and their nerves showed a little during more difficult aspects of their high-energy routine.
Their coach expected those nerves to continue this week with the reality of crowds arriving just for them.
“We’re a small school, but we’re big at heart,” Cotrell said. “And I think that goes a long way.”
According to a tentative schedule, Commerce Middle School will perform at 9:05 a.m. and Commerce High School is scheduled to cheer at 10:48 a.m.
