Do You Have What it takes to Cheer for the Lions?

ST. PETE BEACH, Fla. – The Saint Leo Cheerleaders have a lot on their plate when you are selected as ambassadors of the school.  To properly prepare them for the responsibilities of a grueling year-long schedule, that includes a lot more than just standing on the sidelines at basketball games, Head Coach Heather Vaughn got her team into shape by taking them to a Beach Cheer Camp that was hosted at the Sirata Beach Resort on St. Pete Beach and taught with the help of Adarius Payne, a Professional Choreographer from the All-Star Gym Wildcats of Tampa.

Here is some insight into the clinic from those who went through it (or suffered thought it as you will read) – the Saint Leo Cheerleaders.

Heather Vaughn, Head Coach

Upon arrival we ate lunch, checked into our rooms and got right to work in our first stunting session with camp instructor Adarius Payne.  Focusing on proper technique and partner stunts they finished their evening with conditioning on the beach with me. After five hours of hard work we went to dinner and relaxed at the pool. Even though they woke up early the next morning tired and sore from Day 1 they were ready to put in a full day of hard work. We started Day 2 off with a 1 1/2 mile run on the beach followed by core training, two more stunt sessions, basket tosses in the ocean and team bonding like accidently locking the keys in our van while at dinner. Our final day of camp started with conditioning on the beach, jumps, learning a dance routine and more stunting. It was a shorter day than the day before but it was equally as tough. I knew at the beginning of last season that I wanted to take the cheerleaders to beach camp this summer. Knowing that it was going to be tough i also knew that it was going to be extremely beneficial to them in their personal and team development. I felt that if we could get together as a team, I could push them to work harder than they did all last year and all summer that it would not only test their abilities but make them stronger physically and mentally. No matter how difficult it got it was awesome to see that everyone encouraged each other to do their best!

Jessica Thompson, Senior

Last year was my first year at Saint Leo where I knew absolutely no one. I've always loved cheer and dreamt of one day cheering at the college level, so I thought why not try out for the cheerleading team!  To this day, it has been one of the best ideas I've ever had. I've met some great friends through the cheer team and enjoy the physical commitment the team requires. My favorite part of the weekend was reuniting with my returning teammates and regaining that bond we shared the previous season. I also, enjoyed learning new things; whether it was cheers, stunts, or choreography, I feel we've got some new tools to share while representing the school and cheering on our fellow athletes. Lastly, the physical demand of the conditioning was a test of my personal fitness and I'm proud of myself for pushing through the difficult workouts and coming out on top; it truly was a personal achievement. With the good, always comes some bad. My least favorite part of the weekend was the feeling of wanting to give up. The conditioning was no picnic. Yes, we were working out on beautiful St. Pete Beach, but the heat and the sweat, combined with sand definitely was not a dream. I felt at times we were getting pushed way past our limits, and certainly out of my comfort zone. The workouts were hard and intense and at times the heat was overwhelming, but once I got past the pain and sweat, I felt amazing and knew in the end it was all worth the sweat and tears; that feeling of such achievement after a hardcore workout made it all worth it.

Finally, the upside of working out on the beach?  Cheer stunts in the water!  While we battled the waves, the challenge of stunting in the water was probably the most fun. And after getting past the intensity of the workouts, I truly enjoyed myself and was able to just have fun and laugh at one another for the mistakes we made.

Kari Sypniewiski, Junior

At first I thought I wouldn't be able to go through with this beach camp because it was a lot of hard work. In all reality it was well worth the pain I went through.  Adarius and Josh were great and they really pushed us to be better than what we thought which boosted our confidence a lot. I loved that he pushed us and I feel that is what we needed the most. I liked that we had to work as a team and be close with each other. There wasn't much that I didn't like (other than the excruciating pain I was in the next few mornings and the hot sun). As I said earlier, I didn't think I would be able to go through with it but in all honesty it was WELL worth it.

Cristina Minafra, Junior

I loved camp and honestly thought it was great that we went. Being at camp showed us that we can achieve anything we want, even if we only had eight people. I loved the stunting and how we fought until we got it. The conditioning was tough, but I feel it will help us so much because now we will all be in some good shape and it will benefit us with practices and workouts.  We had been away from each other for so long, but we came together like the team and family we are; like we were never apart from each other. I wouldn't change anything about camp, although it was hard at times and very tiring, we were able to do it. It wasn't meant to be easy but to show us that we can do it. Thank you so much.

Analisa Bosco, Sophomore

So I think that camp went extremely well.  I think that with all of the tough work it really benefited us in the long run. I loved how hard we were pushed, even when I thought I couldn't continue all I heard was encouragement from our coaches and it kept me going. We really worked as hard as we could, and it showed because we now know things we never did before that makes us look even better.  I loved every second of pain I went through because it's only going to benefit me and the team in the end. There is nothing negative that I thought about the camp. It was one of the best experiences I ever had!