Ingles named Coach of the Year

The Cedar Springs Competitive Cheer team hosted the MHSAA’s Division 2 District Competition last Saturday, February 18, where they walked away as the District Champs. The Lady Red Hawks faced fierce competition, as all teams came prepared to win. However, it was the Red Hawks that rose above the rest.

After Round 1, in which precision is key and jumps are crucial, the Cedar Springs Red Hawks, Byron Center Bull Dogs, Grand Rapids Christian Eagles and Kenowa Hills Knights were all one point from each other, with Byron Center in first, Grand Rapids Christian second, Kenowa Hills in third and Cedar Springs fourth.  The Lady Red Hawks came out in the second round with determination and focus, pulling ahead of the rest of the competition with an 8-point lead, while also achieving their best round 2 score of the year with 227.4 for a subtotal of 450.3, landing them in first place going into round 3.

In Round 3, the stunting and gymnastics round, the competition was tough, anticipation rising, and it was too close to call from the view of the parents and spectators. It was suspenseful, with everyone wondering who would finish on top.

Fenessa Cotten, a senior on the team for The Red Hawks said, “I believe that during this past week, the team really pulled together and was extra excited about districts because we were hosting it. During the week, coach had us watch some inspirational videos at practice. Once we were on the mat for round one, I was thinking that I didn’t want it to be the last time to be performing our rounds together as a team. So I put my heart and soul into every round and gave it everything I could. I kept thinking to myself, ‘if I want to succeed, I need to want it more than I can breathe’ (it’s from one of the videos coach had us watch). Also, everyone was helping to get each other pumped up! Which helped a bunch!”

The Lady Red Hawks hit all their marks and now all they could do was wait for the scores. Senior Kelli Markosky, was excited to say, “Winning the title of district champs was something I didn’t even think about going into that competition, but after our round three, I knew we had given it our very best, and to hear our name called as District Champs my senior year is a memory I will cherish the rest of my life.”

The Lady Red Hawks’ score of 316.3 for the third round was a new school record for the Lady Red Hawks for round 3 and they scored 766.6 to take first place overall. The Kenowa Hills Knights took second with a final score of 746.6, Byron Center Bull Dogs placed third and the Grand Rapids Christian Eagles took fourth. All four move on to regionals, which will be held on February 25 at Grand Rapids Christian High School.

Coach Pam Ingles commented, “I’m so proud of all of the girls pulling together and working as a team. Their talent and drive came shining through at a pivotal point in our season. I can’t wait to see what we will continue to do this week at regionals on Saturday.”

Congratulations also go out to Coach Pam Ingles for being awarded Competitive Cheer Coaches Association of Michigan’s “Coach of the Year for 2012” for our district.