CLEARWATER, Fla. — It’s one thing to win a state championship. It’s another to make history.

The Clearwater Central Catholic cheer team did both recently by winning their school’s first state cheerleading title.

What You Need To Know

  • The cheerleading season wrapped up with the state championships in Lakeland, where the top high school teams in Florida competed in several divisions

  • Clearwater Central Catholic won the newest Game Day division

  • It's the first time the Marauders have won a state title in cheerleading

“It’s crazy how far we’ve come and how much work we’ve put into this routine,” said senior cheerleader Ava Keech. “And it just makes me very proud of every single one of the girls.”

Keech is one of the senior captains on this championship squad. The Marauders won the newest division at the cheerleading state championships: Game Day. Their routine showed off stunting, dancing, audience engagement and, of course, cheering.

“It was so amazing hearing our name called,” Keech said. “We were jumping up and down, hugging each other. It was so amazing because it felt like all of the work we put into this paid off.”

It paid off with a trophy and gold medals. And eventually a banner hanging in the gym. The sport of cheerleading has come a long way, and this CCC squad has grown up with it. Now, they get to add state champions to their resume.

“It means the world to me,” Keech said. “And it’s so special, because for years we’ve been trying to make this team happen and we just weren’t able to do it until this year. So, it just makes me so happy that it was something we were able to accomplish.”