Forgive Waiakea’s cheerleaders for not being on hand to support the Warriors’ football team during its HHSAA Division I football game against Campbell on Nov. 4.
The three-time defending BIIF cheer champions wanted to be there, but finances are finances, and they have another engagement.
Coach Lody Switzer’s squad has title dreams of its own and is getting set to make a trip to Oahu for their annual appearance at the HHSAA cheerleading championships on Saturday at Neal Blaisdell Center.
“We aim for the top five, and anything better than that is great,” Switzer said.
Waiakea finished third last season in the medium division, its best result since taking runner-up in 2009.
The team’s motto this season is “Defend ‘til the end.”
Mariah Higashi, Kobie Uyeda, Alexis Saito, Jazmine Correa, Emma Fincher, Annique Daquep, Chanel Higashi, Brentt Sentino and Caitlyn Nakata lived up to those words Nov. 2 in the league finals at Kealakehe with a 2.5-minute routine that blended athleticism, technical know-how and synchronization.
Hilo took second and the Waveriders were third in the seven-team field and will also participate at states.
The advantage Waiakea cheerleaders have on others in the BIIF, Switzer said, is their proficiency in tumbling.
“Most of them have a background in tumbling before they get to Waiakea,” she said. “To obtain the kind of tumbling we need, you have a gymnastics background..
“If their brand new, I’d advice them to go and get it.”
It’s a formula that’s worked for Switzer for the past 17 years. She’s assisted by daughter Tanya Switzer and Rusti Gomes.
“They have to work through difficulty and they have to work together,” Lody Switzer said of her squad.
After states, Waiakea will gear up to perform at the school’s basketball games, and the Warriors also are considering competing at a national competition in Las Vegas.