After an extended fall season, the OHS Cheerleaders have successfully settled into their 2018-19 winter cheer squads. Unlike fall cheer, winter cheer consists of five different squads; girls and boys basketball, wrestling, girls and boys hockey and JV. The basketball, wrestling, and hockey cheer squads all stay with the same sport throughout the whole season. Since they do not move from sport to sport, each squad builds a personal connection with the team they are cheering for. This is what makes winter cheer special for both the cheerleaders and the players.

Cheerleaders are responsible for pumping up the crowd, so without them, the atmosphere would be totally different. Fighting the typical stereotype put on cheerleaders can be difficult. Senior captain, Lily Redman said, “Battling the cheerleading stereotype is hard. We put a lot of effort into cheer, just like other sports.”

Not only do they put in extra time to be successful during the game, they also spend extra time helping out in the community. OHS  Cheer coach Mara Oien said, “The best thing about winter cheer is that the squads are working with Big Brothers- Big Sisters right now. They are sponsoring six different families which totals to 10 kids, and they are buying Christmas presents for all of them.” This is what makes winter cheer special. When attending  a basketball, wrestling or hockey game, feel free to pay attention to the cheerleaders too.