The Minnetonka Cheer Team is best known for their amazing performances on the sidelines at every football game that never fail to hype up the student section and spread the Skipper spirit. However, what most people don’t know is that they are not only leaders on the field; they are also super successful on the competition floor and make a large impact on the Minnetonka community.
Following the sideline season, the cheer team begins competition season where they participate in many competitions anywhere from local competitions in Minnesota to other destinations around the country. They perform both “Traditional” and “Game Day” routines; Traditional focuses on entertaining the crowd while Game Day engages the crowd.
The team has an extremely impressive résumé, claiming 26 Varsity Cheerleading State titles, 8 Junior Varsity State titles, 3 World School Cheerleading Competition championships, and 6 UCA National High School Cheerleading championships, and they’ve got many more accomplishments to come. “The coaches push us and never let us settle,” cheer captain Isabelle Harig, ‘24, explained. Despite their endless array of accomplishments, their main goal isn’t winning, but rather exhibiting personal improvement because in the end, cheer is a subjective sport and the quality of the routine and the score given for it might not always align.
In cheer, the athletes are much more involved than just their performance. “It’s so different from any other sport,” Harig described.
The Tonka cheer team also contributes to the greater Minnetonka community in various ways. One way they give back is through Sparklers, the adaptive cheerleading program, where the upperclassmen cheerleaders assist in coaching cheer to students with disabilities. They also host youth clinics throughout the year where the cheerleaders help students from Minnetonka’s elementary schools develop new jumps, stunts, and other cheer skills. In addition to this, the cheerleaders volunteer at Kowalski’s to assist workers with grocery bagging and cheer on the bikers participating in the Tour de Tonka over the summer.
Tonka Cheer is full of hard-working, motivated people who shine in both their attitude and performance. “They’re very passionate about their sport and want to excel,” Head Coach, André Brewer, added. Through Cheer, they develop and demonstrate a positive mindset, teamwork, while also learning fun routines and elements of the sport. “I like that it teaches them life skills that they can use in college and life after college,” Brewer commented.
According to Brewer, Tonka Cheer is a place where people “can try new things and experience success”.
