West Jay wins

INDIANAPOLIS — Jaws dropped.
Then came the screams.
Coach Cheree McCallister’s hands covered her face.
Seventh grader Taylor Lowe leaned back and kicked her feet into the air. And her classmates Allison Jobe and Rachel Louck shared the first of many hugs.
Greencastle had finished second, and that could mean only one thing — the Eagles were champions.
West Jay Middle School’s nearly-flawless routine early Saturday evening led to the emotional celebration a few hours later as the squad earned its first Indiana State Fair cheerleading championship.
“This is like the best moment of my life,” said seventh grade Mikale Knight while her teammates tossed around the words “excited” and “amazing” over and over again.
WJMS finished ahead of runner-up Greencastle while three-time defending champion Mount Vernon placed third.
“I don’t know what to say, other than I’m proud of them and very excited,” said McCallister, whose squad had never finished higher than third at the state fair. “The girls have really came together this past week. … The timing couldn’t have been more appropriate.”
The victory came at the end of an emotional stretch for the Eagles after tragedy struck their cheerleading family.
Seventh grader MaKenna Davis’ mom, Shawna, died unexpectedly last week. She was honored following the state fair preview show Friday evening at Jay County High School, and her name, via the hashtag #ShawnaStrong, was emblazoned on T-shirts worn by West Jay’s fan base.
More than anything else, the West Jay cheerleaders wanted to win for MaKenna, in honor of Shawna.
“It meant a lot,” said Lowe. “Shawna was really special to our team.”
“I could just see her up there cheering for us,” added sixth grader Abbi Kuss, pointing toward the grandstand.
“Every single girl on the team felt that way,” said McCallister. “I think that’s what pushed them. And I think that’s what gave them the drive to do so well today.”
The Eagles were close to perfect.
They opened with a strong set of back tucks and nailed the first building section. Their long tumbling was spot on — each pass synchronized and every landing stuck.
The second building section included Dara Grove first flipping in the air between the first and second pyramids, and then twisting out of the third into the arms of her teammates.
The motions during the finish were performed in perfect unity.
“We were confident about what we did,” said eighth grader Randi Ferguson.
The judges scores reflected that feeling.
West Jay earned high marks across the board, averaging 8.625 or higher (out of 10) in every category.
Its best numbers came in tumbling, for which one judge awarded the squad 19 out of a possible 20 points. It was complimented for its back tucks, technique and timing.
The Eagles also picked up a 9.5 from a judge in the crowd appeal/voices category. They earned scores of 91.5 and 91 (out of 100) from two of the four judges, helping them vault from seventh place in 2013 to the top of the standings this year.
“We added more difficulty in our builds,” said Grove, one of two eighth graders on the squad along with Ferguson. “We worked on our jumps and our tumbling and all of that.”
“We’ve had a lot of girls that worked really hard since last year, that took it upon themselves to get in classes. And some of them did some cheer teams,” said McCallister. “That was without my pushing them at all. They work on their own. They have a heart and desire for cheer like I’ve never seen before.”