March 14, 2026
By Leah Campos
Staff Writer
The 24 athletes on the winter cheer competition team proved that with dedication and commitment, a young team can be successful.
The team finished first out of four teams in the Group 2 All-Music and Varsity All-Music Co-ed Divisions at the state championship at Monroe Township High School on March 7. It placed third out of eight teams in the Varsity All-Music Co-ed Division at the New Jersey Interscholastic Conference Championship at Park Ridge High School on Feb. 10.
Junior Ava Giordano, a base, flyer and tumbler who has been on varsity since her freshman year, said the team made many changes to their 2-minute, 30-second routine since the beginning of the season.
“When things weren’t working, we switched it around,” Giordano said. “We had girls trying out different spots, and we had some injuries too, so we had people moving around a lot.”
Giordano said the cheerleaders did not immediately learn the choreography. Instead, they focused on their stunts.
“Now, we just run our routine over and over again, making sure we can perfect it the best we can,” Giordano said.
Before competing, each cheerleading team rotates through three stations, spending a total of 15 minutes on the stretching, tumbling and competition mats.
“[Mat time] is very helpful because if you’re seeing something that isn’t working, we can change it before we actually have to perform and do the routine,” Giordano said.
“Knowing that all week long you’ve practiced whatever skill you’ve practiced, and it’s been shaky, and then they get out there on the weekend and they hit it and it’s perfect, that’s the most rewarding thing.”
Coach Montillo, who has been coaching the competition and basketball cheer teams for the past 10 years, said mat time affects the cheerleaders differently.
“If they have bad mat times, sometimes some of the newer athletes can’t let that go, and it carries over into their performances where you can see it on their faces [that] they almost look scared,” Montillo said.
She said that having 10 new athletes on the mat resulted in a period of adjustment.
“[The greatest challenge is teaching] my newer athletes to hit the elite skills that the older ones are doing, and for the older ones to keep those skills and just be sharp,” Montillo said. “We’ve needed consistency in our skills, meaning all our stunt groups [are] doing the same skills.”
Despite the hurdles the team faces, Montillo said she enjoys watching the cheerleaders gain new skills.
“Knowing that all week long you’ve practiced whatever skill you’ve practiced, and it’s been shaky, and then they get out there on the weekend and they hit it and it’s perfect, that’s the most rewarding thing,” Montillo said.
Freshman base and tumbler Kaitlyn Stiefel, who joined varsity this year, said the team is always striving to improve.
“We have a set goal, and then we shoot for something else once that’s hitting well,” Stiefel said. “You get one thing stable, and then you add a little bit more to it. Then we start doing spins all the way up. The more comfortable you get with it, the more gets added.”
Stiefel said no position on the team is easy, but she thinks flying is the most difficult.
“Being able to trust everybody underneath you [is challenging because if] something goes wrong, [then] you can end up really hurt,” Stiefel said.
She said the best way to learn more about cheerleading is to see a performance.
“A lot of people tend to claim that cheer isn’t a sport, but a lot of people can’t do half the things we do,” Stiefel said. “Just come and watch us.
