Freshman Shelton Brady got her wish.

“I’ve always wanted to be a cheerleader, but this is the first time I went out for it,” Brady said. “I’ve watched the cheerleaders every time I’ve seen them and the cheerleading movies made it look fun. I thought if I tried it, maybe I would like it. It turns out I do.”

But now that Brady is a member of the squad, it’s time to get down to business.

As football season approaches, the Meadowview Christian School varsity cheerleaders have prepared hard for the season.

The girls practice at least 10 hours per week to prepare routines and skits for the pep rallies and football games, plus they take time to make signs for the sidelines or for the football team to break though as players run onto the field.

Moves and cheers are relatively flawless from the effort the squad puts into everything beforehand.

“We make it look easy because we practice so much that it comes as an ease to us,” Brady said. “[Students] underestimate us, but when they try to do it, they see how strong we really are.”

Senior Ashley Woods, squad captain, helps her teammates perfect moves and cheers.

“I’ll help them pick out what they’re doing wrong and what they need to fix,” Woods said. “Anything that they need, if the sponsor is not here, they’ll come to me.”

Cheerleaders work just as hard as football players, Woods said.

“We’re putting in just as much work as them, but with cheering you have to be mentally prepared as well as physically because it can do a lot to you.”

She has seen teammates cry if they do not get a routine just right, but uses the family spirit of the squad to boost team morale.

“If one person is down, we all group to bring that person up,” Woods said.

And, just like football, cheerleaders endure the summer heat.

Squad members practice in the gymnasium but moved to the cafeteria when the heat is unbearable.

“The summers in the Meadowview gym are extremely hot and we work about five hours a day in the gym during the summer,” said senior Serenity Beverly.

Despite the difficulty of practices, squad members love cheerleading.

“I like getting in front of a crowd and hear everybody scream and yell with you for your guys,” Beverly said. “It’s awesome.”

Cheerleaders must keep in mind that they represent the school at all times, Beverly said.

“You have to be a good example to the younger kids,” Beverly said. “You have to watch what you do in school, outside of school and no matter where you are going, everyone looks at you and knows you are a Meadowview cheerleader and that you represent the school.”