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Cheer captains aiming for the top
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| Combined effort: From left, Amie Cannaday, Vanessa Romeo and Francis Rosas help boost spirit while setting their sights on another cheerleading national title. (Thelma Grimes/photo.) |
Curtis Elliott
Vail Sun
The three co-captains of the Cienega cheerleading team that won nationals last year are back to lead cheers for the playoff aspirations of the football team.
Cheerleading coach Mischelle Cannaday is in her fourth year as head coach, so she knows Amie Cannaday, Vanessa Romeo and Francis Rosas pretty well.
Cannaday talked about what Rosas brings to the cheerleading team.
"She has the creativity, dances, and routines. She is a quiet leader who leads by example."
Of Romeo, Cannaday said, "She's really good at communicating and bringing everyone together as one."
And Amie Cannaday, who is the coach's daughter, "has the ability to teach people. Knowing when it's necessary to listen, and also knowing when to get things moving. Amie's the happy medium," said the coach.
The captains won nationals last year in Las Vegas, but cheerleading is not all they do. Romeo is the student body president at Cienega and says her grade point average is between 3.5-3.7. Romeo is also the least experienced in cheerleading of the three.
"I'm only starting my second year in cheerleading," Romeo said. "Everyone here is very supportive, even though I'm inexperienced."
"Last year, I had a tough year, but coming to cheer practice was like coming to be with family. Through cheerleading, I've learned to get along with different types of people. They made me look at life brighter."
"We're also good friends with the football players. We're very supportive of each other."
Romeo says she enjoys government and wants to teach.
"I would like to teach high school Spanish. I had wanted to teach, but when I got to Cienega, I decided I wanted to teach high school. I could give the students more of a reason to go to school."
Rosas is the student body vice president at Cienega. Her grade-point average is 3.9. This is her fifth year as a cheerleader. She enjoys it, partly because she's learning new things.
"There are still new stunts coming up," Rosas said. "Rules change. I have a greater love for cheer since I've been doing it for a long time."
The school just had a pep rally, and Rosas was encouraged by the turnout.
"It went well. Half of our squad is new. Most of the stunts hit, but everyone enjoyed it. The school enjoyed it. Most of our school is spirited."
Rosas is also very interested in her studies.
"I'm really involved in school activities," Rosas said. "I'm taking advanced classes and working on the school yearbook. It's my design this year."
Rosas feels there are a good variety of skills on Cienega's cheerleading squad.
"We have dancers, gymnasts, and people from other sports."
Amie Cannaday began cheerleading as a freshman. She has a grade-point average of 3.0.
Cannaday explained why cheerleaders may be more cohesive than other sports teams.
"We stay together for the whole year," Cannaday said. "It makes us closer."
After football season, they'll be cheering on basketball, and then they'll be back in competitions, such as the one they won last year.
"At school, we like to be optimistic, promote school spirit, and outside of school, little girls watch us and look up to us," Cannaday said. "I try to be a role model for them. "
Cannaday is planning to attend the University of Arizona, emphasizing elementary education.
Cannaday says that when the football team is losing, the cheer squad tries to pick up the slack.
"When the team is behind, I try to become more spirited. It helps us to keep our spirits up. We have different chants depending on whether we're winning or losing."
Cannaday also likes pep rallies like the one that Cienega just had.
"The junior varsity and varsity got together," Cannaday said. "We united as one team. It's a lot of fun getting everyone excited. Everyone gets into assemblies here at Cienega. We have a good school here."
Vail Sun
The three co-captains of the Cienega cheerleading team that won nationals last year are back to lead cheers for the playoff aspirations of the football team.
Cheerleading coach Mischelle Cannaday is in her fourth year as head coach, so she knows Amie Cannaday, Vanessa Romeo and Francis Rosas pretty well.
Cannaday talked about what Rosas brings to the cheerleading team.
"She has the creativity, dances, and routines. She is a quiet leader who leads by example."
Of Romeo, Cannaday said, "She's really good at communicating and bringing everyone together as one."
And Amie Cannaday, who is the coach's daughter, "has the ability to teach people. Knowing when it's necessary to listen, and also knowing when to get things moving. Amie's the happy medium," said the coach.
The captains won nationals last year in Las Vegas, but cheerleading is not all they do. Romeo is the student body president at Cienega and says her grade point average is between 3.5-3.7. Romeo is also the least experienced in cheerleading of the three.
"I'm only starting my second year in cheerleading," Romeo said. "Everyone here is very supportive, even though I'm inexperienced."
"Last year, I had a tough year, but coming to cheer practice was like coming to be with family. Through cheerleading, I've learned to get along with different types of people. They made me look at life brighter."
"We're also good friends with the football players. We're very supportive of each other."
Romeo says she enjoys government and wants to teach.
"I would like to teach high school Spanish. I had wanted to teach, but when I got to Cienega, I decided I wanted to teach high school. I could give the students more of a reason to go to school."
Rosas is the student body vice president at Cienega. Her grade-point average is 3.9. This is her fifth year as a cheerleader. She enjoys it, partly because she's learning new things.
"There are still new stunts coming up," Rosas said. "Rules change. I have a greater love for cheer since I've been doing it for a long time."
The school just had a pep rally, and Rosas was encouraged by the turnout.
"It went well. Half of our squad is new. Most of the stunts hit, but everyone enjoyed it. The school enjoyed it. Most of our school is spirited."
Rosas is also very interested in her studies.
"I'm really involved in school activities," Rosas said. "I'm taking advanced classes and working on the school yearbook. It's my design this year."
Rosas feels there are a good variety of skills on Cienega's cheerleading squad.
"We have dancers, gymnasts, and people from other sports."
Amie Cannaday began cheerleading as a freshman. She has a grade-point average of 3.0.
Cannaday explained why cheerleaders may be more cohesive than other sports teams.
"We stay together for the whole year," Cannaday said. "It makes us closer."
After football season, they'll be cheering on basketball, and then they'll be back in competitions, such as the one they won last year.
"At school, we like to be optimistic, promote school spirit, and outside of school, little girls watch us and look up to us," Cannaday said. "I try to be a role model for them. "
Cannaday is planning to attend the University of Arizona, emphasizing elementary education.
Cannaday says that when the football team is losing, the cheer squad tries to pick up the slack.
"When the team is behind, I try to become more spirited. It helps us to keep our spirits up. We have different chants depending on whether we're winning or losing."
Cannaday also likes pep rallies like the one that Cienega just had.
"The junior varsity and varsity got together," Cannaday said. "We united as one team. It's a lot of fun getting everyone excited. Everyone gets into assemblies here at Cienega. We have a good school here."
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| Empire harriers on the run |
