The Powell High School cheer team learned a new co-ed routine late in the season, leading to a third place finish in the 4A co-ed competition at the state spirit competition Jan. 26 in Casper. The team also improved on last year’s 3A game day score, but finished fifth and fell just short of earning hardware for a second consecutive year.

Competing against bigger schools with a routine that the Panthers decided to learn later in the season, the PHS cheer team placed third as only four schools entered regardless of classification.

“Our co-ed routine I knew going in we were going to have some tough competition,” coach Vicki Walsh said. “The 4A schools are so good and have a lot more kids and typically more male athletes than we do. We started this routine really late, mid-December and I felt like we were not quite ready, but I wanted the kids to have the opportunity.”

She said that the kids were nervous prior, but went out on the mat and gave their best performance to date.

“They totally nailed it and I was so proud of them. It was so fun to watch and see the excitement on their faces,” Walsh said. “Unfortunately they didn’t give a third place trophy, but to me, bringing home hardware is not what it is all about.”

Powell finished with a score of 72.4, just ahead of Rock Springs which was fourth with a 72. Star Valley placed just ahead in second with a 76.3 while Green River dominated with a final score of 90.3.

Last year the Panthers earned a fourth place trophy in game day cheer with a score of 83.8. They were hoping to improve their score this year returning most of their team.

They did just that, securing an 87.25, but finished fifth as every team improved its score from last year.

“I was incredibly proud of my kids this year,” Walsh said. “Even though they didn’t bring home any hardware they were so close in the game day category. There were 11 teams competing and we were right in the middle of the pack.”

Walsh said the team has a shorter time frame to prepare for state at the end of January as some of the kids on the team don’t join until after fall sports are over, but she felt the team had made the right preparations for the competition.

“These kids worked really hard to get this routine perfected and I feel like they were mentally and physically ready to go,” Walsh said. “The competition is always tough, there are a lot of really good schools who compete in 3A game day and this year was no different. Am I proud of them? Absolutely, they went out on the mat and gave it their all. I was very happy with their performance.”

Powell finished with a score of 87.25, just behind Cody in fourth with an 87.95. Pinedale was third with a 91, Riverton was second with a 91.9 and Mountain View won the game day category with a 93.6.

The Panthers will lose several seniors to graduation this year that Walsh said the team will miss, but she knows that the team will return a lot of talent next year.

“The underclassmen are all great cheerleaders and will be bringing back a lot of talent next year,” Walsh said. “I know they will be ready to get to work and try to get a higher placing in game day. They are all very determined and I know they will want to look at the score sheets and take the judges’ comments and learn from them to put together a solid routine.”