The members of the Blue Earth Area cheer team began preparing for the football season in early July. They are pictured above, front row, left to right, Mariah King, Kenzi Eckmann, Aroa Aciccola-Rubio, MaLeah Osmundson, Alexis Holst. Back row, left to right, Mariah Ehlers, Liberty Stith, Aaliyah Worden, Lexi Larson, Haleigh Farley. Missing from the photo is student manager Juli Lewis.

When Blue Earth Area’s high school football team takes the field, the young men dressed in pads and helmets are not the only athletes spectators will see participating in the action during the game. There is another group of students who put in a large chunk of time to make sure they are also ready to perform at their best during the football game.

They are the members of the BEA cheer team.

This year there are 10 females who comprise the Bucs’ cheer team in addition to a student manager. The team is made up of students from seventh through 12th grade.

And just like the football team has a coach, the cheer team also has a coach and the Bucs’ coach is Rachel Kienitz.

Kienitz began coaching the cheer team in 1999. After a little break she returned to mentoring the team in 2012 and has been at the helm of the program ever since.

There are many reasons why this group of cheerleaders have chosen to be a member of the cheer team.

“I love the socialization aspect of being a part of this group,” cheerleader Liberty Stith says. “It is amazing the trust you build with each other.”

For some of the girls, like Haleigh Farley, being a cheerleader has been a lifelong dream.

“I knew I wanted to be a cheerleader since I was a little girl,” Farley comments. “It sounded like fun.”

It is not an easy endeavor to be a cheerleader.

“The time commitment it takes to be a cheerleader is amazing,” MaLeah Osmundson explains. “But being on the squad teaches us to help and support each other.”

“We get to build a second family,” Lexi Larson adds. “It provides us with more people to build a relationship with and gives you more people who are there to support you.”

Aaliyah Worden, who is in her sixth year of cheerleading, is the veteran of the squad. Kenzi Eckmann and Larson are each in their fifth year.

Football is the only fall sport that has cheerleaders. During the winter season, both girls and boys basketball, along with wrestling, will have cheerleaders.

Besides the bonds they build with each other and the social positives of being on the squad, all 10 members of the BEA cheer team say they simply enjoy football.

“We are all football fans and would go to the games even if we weren’t cheerleading,” one of the girls shares.

While the fall sports teams all began their preseason practices in August, the cheer team was already hard at work on July 6.

Not only are there 70 different cheers for the girls to learn, they also are working on their motion technique and other physical aspects that cheerleading requires.

“We work on getting the body in shape,” Worden says. “We also learn proper placement.”

“Body mechanics is a huge part of cheerleading,” Kienitz notes. “It is important to do things properly to avoid injury.”

The cheerleaders say that stunting is the favorite part of what they do.

“Doing stunts directly builds trust,” Kienitz says. “Over the years the stunts have become more complex and the transitions are more involved.”

Blue Earth Area’s cheer team is governed by the Minnesota State High School League and the National Federation of High Schools.

“Competitive teams follow a different set of rules,” Kienitz comments.

Over the years the BEA cheer team has had the opportunity to partake in the University of Minnesota band, cheer and dance day.

“The cheer team will practice with spirit squads and cheerleading squads in the morning,” Kienitz says. “Then they will partake in a pep rally and attend a Gophers’ football game and be part of the halftime show. It is a good experience and the girls have a lot of fun.”

And like the football team, the cheer team puts together a game plan prior to each game.

“We have plans for what we will do at each timeout,” Osmundson remarks. “We are prepared for anything.”

The members of the cheer squad also are active in other areas. The events and organizations they participate in include Coaches for Cancer, Relay for Life, Giant Days, Holiday Sampler and Scarfing the Giant. They also put on cheerleading clinics for younger kids three times during the year.

The members of the cheer team list other benefits they have experienced by being a cheerleader

“I feel like I get a good energy boost,” Osmundson says.

Maria Ehlers feels it is a great way to increase a person’s social circle.

“You come into contact with, and get to meet, so many other people,” she remarks.

Worden shares she gained a lot of confidence through cheerleading and Liberty adds that her grades got better when she joined the cheer squad.

Kienitz shares her own thoughts about the squad.

“They are all leaders,” Kienitz states. “There is the word leader in cheerleader for a reason.”