Varsity Cheerleading competed at the first-ever Winter UCBACs Thursday, Jan. 29 at Harford Community College’s APGFCU Arena. The team went against teams from both Harford County and Cecil County.

A week before, the team competed at C. Milton Wright’s Invitational as a practice competition before UCBACs. It was the first time the team was back on the mat after winning States the previous season, although this time the routine had been changed and new people had been added to the team. The invitational was a way to calm everyone down and have a chance to compete with the added elements and new people.

“The feedback from the judges at the CMW Invitational helped us prepare and make changes to our routine for UCBAC. It was a nice confidence booster to our team and confirmation that we could hit a solid routine!” stated Senior Jacquelyn Cruz.

The team received 2^nd at the CMW Invitational, behind Perry Hall from Baltimore County. The next scheduled competition was Patterson Mill’s Invitational, but that was canceled because of the weather. So the team knew it was time to prepare for UCBAC and it was approaching fast. Some members had never competed at UCBACs and with more changes and fixes to the routine, the stress was piling up.

“We lost a lot of people and we are continuously learning new things, but that doesn’t stop us from not having the same passion that we had last season and we will still continue to work hard and succeed,” said Junior Emily Hughes.

“Hardwork, dedication, motivation from all the teammates, and overcoming obstacles are common things we go through and it’s simple as that,” said Captain Andrea Mullin.

Between CMW Invitational and UCBAC, the team changed things like the pyramid by making it flow better and keeping the flyers safe. They have also made the choreography flashier and put more energy into it.
“It’s fun to work with the new team members and we have definitely spiced things up from last season!” said Senior Ciara Wiegard.

The night of UCBAC was an exciting one. With impending weather, the competition was sped up by 10 minutes and the time to compete for Bel Air was approaching fast. Teammates gave each other encouraging reinforcement and soon were headed to warm up. Stunts were sturdy, people were tumbling with smiles on their face. Next thing they knew, they were on deck to compete. While the team performing before Bel Air took the mat, the girls were getting a pep talk and getting excited.

The sound of Bobcat Nation was deafening as the girls approached the mat. They took the mat and when the music started, the girls showed energy and excitement that the crowd enjoyed. All of the stunts all hit and people ended the routine with smiles on their face. It was like a sigh of relief, knowing the work they put into making that routine had most likely gotten them 1^st place.

“The amount of work put in order to repeat such an accomplishment is unreal. A lot of full outs and sprints make that moment worth every second. This team is something special, and keeping each other motivated through all of the hard practices and wins and losses. This is a family, and we like to call it a glorified practice,” said Senior Jenny Smith.

The ‘family’ of cheerleaders were announced UCBAC Champions yet again. The plaque, completely empty, will soon show ‘Bel Air’ in the first spot. This is the second time Bel Air has won UCBAC, being the first team to do so. It is also the first time a team has gone back to back at Counties/UCBAC in many years.

Varsity’s next stop is Regionals. From Harford County, Harford Tech and CMW will continue their journey to States as well. And from Cecil County, Bo Manor will continue as well. This season, instead of top 8 moving on to States, only the top 7 teams will.

“We are working on cleaning up the routine and just putting the final touches on it. If we hit our routine the way it’s supposed to be, we will do amazing,” said Senior Sarah Ermatinger.

Regionals will be Saturday, Feb. 7 at HCC’s APGFCU Arena again where Bel Air will up against teams from Harford, Baltimore, Cecil, Carroll, and Fredrick County.