Strawberry Crest’s competitive team is shorthanded, but not short on willpower.
After every Strawberry Crest High School cheerleading practice, no matter how well the routines went, the Chargers turn to each other for inspiration.
It’s always in the form of a quote picked out by a team member who, as is always the case, was asked to come prepared with some words of wisdom on a specific day. One quote in particular, courtesy of captain Alexis Powell, applies more to the 2017-18 squad than usual.
“Life is only 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.”
This paraphrase of a quote attributed to Christian pastor Chuck Swindoll means so much to the 2017-18 Chargers in part because, for the first time since 2015, team numbers took an unexpected dive. Crest’s cheer program, perhaps pound-for-pound one of Hillsborough County’s most successful and a perennial state championship contender, is fielding roughly seven fewer athletes than what’s normal of a small co-ed program.
Head coach Loveny Rivas, now in her fifth season helming the program, said the season hasn’t been an easy one by any stretch of the imagination. But her faith in the boys and girls of the program is high because, even with low numbers and the loss of a “big chunk” of seniors, the team knows what it needs to do to persevere under the circumstances.
“Even though it’s a small group, it’s a very dynamic group,” Rivas said. “All the skill that’s on the floor is extremely high.”
It’s a different feeling for the Chargers, given the resume they’ve put together since 2013: three consecutive state and regional championship wins, four total regional titles, four Western Conference championships, one state and one regional runner-up finish. They’re the first group to hang a banner in the Crest gym and the first Hillsborough County team to ever win three state titles in a row. These kids don’t often get labeled as underdogs.
Running with 13 cheerleaders in a division that normally features 20 on the mat at one time, might change that perception. But Rivas counts on her “veterans” — about half the team, she says — to keep the newer Chargers on the right track.
“We don’t think about numbers that much … our 13 is just a hurdle and we don’t need to let it get to us,” Powell said. “We’re 13 strong.”
Powell said she’s personally taken the aforementioned Swindoll quote to heart since it was first brought up. It defines her attitude on and off the mats. It even made its way onto her college applications. Most importantly, at least as far as the team’s concerned, it’s what she and fellow captain Cassidy Meyer come back to when they have to step up as team leaders this season.
“Champions can adapt to anything,” Powell said.
Though the 2017 part of the 2017-18 season hasn’t been particularly kind to Crest, the Chargers are adapting now and hoping for the best for later.
It’s not the first time Rivas has had to make do with a smaller group. Lessons she learned from the 2014-15 season, she said, are now in effect. That year, Crest was plagued by a rash of injuries and cheerleader walk-outs in December — and, despite not being able to perform its full routine until regionals, the season ended with a state title win. Unyielding perseverance, Rivas said, was what put that team in position to overcome an obstacle that could have derailed many teams.
“Never give up,” Rivas said. “Just never give up. Always move forward, no matter what.”
So far, Crest has won one competition — its first, held in Dover — and has since racked up several second-place finishes. The showcase held a day before that win, Powell said, was a major turning point for the team in terms of getting its confidence up, as it was the first time the Chargers were able to nail their routine in front of a crowd.
“No matter how many people were out there, we had confidence in each other and ourselves,” she said. “We knew what had to be done to be successful.”
The next thing Crest must do to be successful, to hear Rivas tell it, is leave 2017 in the dust. The coach considers 2018 a fresh start, even if it’s not exactly starting a new season.
“I think the one thing we’re going to be focused on more in 2018 is knowing that it’s a brand new year and a brand new slate,” Rivas said. “When you hit those competitions, just go in full force with nothing but the utmost confidence and give it all you’ve got.”
The Chargers will try to get back into their first place groove in their next four competitions before heading into postseason action. With their blank-slate attitude for the new year, perhaps they’ll soon borrow a quote from the television version of Friday Night Lights.
“Clear eyes. Full hearts. Can’t lose.”
