by Haley Verre
Staff Writer

The Westford Academy Cheerleading Team is back this year with fewer members, but more talent. Along with talent comes strong group dynamics, hard work, and an overall better team.

Captain Baylee Sacco said the new season for the cheerleading team looks promising and the team is the most talented it has been in years.

Sacco believes unity is key to the team’s success and strengthens their overall performance.

“If we are more comfortable with each other then we can tell each other what [we] need to work on or fix so [we] can do our best”, said Sacco.

Kaitlin Canha, the team’s other captain, also believes the team is off to a good start and believes the team can make it all the way to the state-wide competition.

As captains, Sacco and Canha take on more responsibility, which includes handling suggestions for change and improvement.

Tamara Lee Hayes is in her third year as the head coach of the team. She started out by doing choreography for the Junior Varsity squad and is now leading the team to a successful season.

Hayes, who has been passionate about the sport since childhood, said “nothing beats a smile on your cheerleaders’ faces when they successfully perform a new skill for the very first time, or achieve a long-waited award”.

Hayes explains that the team is only on the sidelines for “five percent” of the season and the rest is working hard enough to make it to the state championship.

The team is getting ready for the Dual County League competition, which will take place November 6. The team would then go on to the Regionals, and then to the State Championship on November 23.

Cheerleader Jessie Wilkinson, whose position is back spot, says that the team “has the potential and talent to get [themselves] there.”

In order for the team to be at its best, Wilkinson thinks the team needs to work on generating enthusiasm, especially in facial expression.

Nick Mattinson, who is also on the team, said the seniors on the team are hoping to make it as far as the Nationals in March, which would require the team to get over eighty points in the state championship.

The cheerleading team is talented, but competitive and the team faces a lot of pressure to do well.

To ensure the team is at its best for the competitions, the cheerleaders practice every weekday for two hours and run the track on Saturdays to stay in shape.

Jill Puduski, who is on the base position, says the routine planned for the DCLs consists of a series of stunts, tumbles, jumps, and cheers.

“Everyone will have to come watch to see what the final routine will look like,” says Puduski.

Puduski, like the rest of her teammates, is confident in her team and its potential success.

The current team has been cut down to fourteen members instead of the usual twenty. The downsize is a result of letting some of the previous members go, but mostly due to being more selective about the number of freshmen on the team.

With fewer members, the team has the opportunity to build stronger relationships.

“I feel like because of [cutting down the team] we have become closer as a team and program as a whole,” said Canha.