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Southwest Eagles cheer squad to perform at Holiday Bowl

September 27, 2009|By MARIO RENTERIA, Sports Editor

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The Southwest High cheerleading squad will get the chance of a lifetime when it shows off its spirit at the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl in December at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.

The varsity cheer squad was invited by the Bowl Games of America, an organization with professional choreographers that invite cheer, dance and drill squads around the country to perform at various college bowl games.

The Eagles were recommended and invited to represent the Imperial Valley.

“They were very excited,” Southwest cheer head coach Denise Harrison said.

The Eagles will join other invited squads to perform during the halftime show at the game. They will also participate in the parade along Harbor Drive leading up to the game and partake in four days of coordinating from the professional choreographers.

“They’re really excited because there’ll be professional choreographers there and some of them are hoping they might be able to stand out,” Harrison said.

It’s the fact that the Southwest cheer squad has stood out in the past couple of years that landed it the invitation. Last year, the Eagles won a regionals competition in the state. They’ve won summer camp championships and most recently, had three girls receive All-America honors.

At a summer camp organized by the Universal Cheerleading Association at the University of California in Los Angeles in August, Savannah Nelson, 16, a junior, Ashton Lang, 17, a senior, and Victoria Richmond, 17, a senior, received the All-America honors.

The honor automatically brings invitations to perform at various events throughout the rest of the year, including a New Year’s parade in London, England.

The girls, however, are focused on the Holiday Bowl, which is set to kick off at 5 p.m. Dec. 30 and is scheduled to air on ESPN.

“I was so excited and I was so proud of my team because we all got invited to do that,” said Lang, the cheer captain. “As a captain, I’m so proud of my team.”

She was also proud of receiving the All-America honor.

“When I found out, I was ecstatic. It’s a big honor getting All-America. It just made me so happy,” Lang said.

The rest of the squad is also hoping for a lifetime experience.

“I’m really excited. I hope it’s going to be a lot of fun, and I’m excited just because we get to all be together,” said 17-year-old senior Demi Driscoll. “I’m looking forward to seeing the crowd and being in front of all those people and representing the Valley.”

AT A GLANCE

Want to help the Eagles make the trip?

- The Southwest High varsity cheer squad is holding fundraisers and accepting donations for its trip to the Pacific Life Holiday Bowl in December at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.

- To find out more about its fundraisers or make a donation contact varsity cheer head coach Denise Harrison at 960-4435 or send a donation addressed to the varsity cheer squad at Southwest High.

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