Early Monday morning two Morgan Hill Raiders cheer teams will
embark on the adventure of their young lives. At 5am the Midgets
(ages 11-15) and Junior Pee Wees (ages 8-11) cheer squads along
with 14 chaperones will board a plan bound for Orlando, Fla. where
they will participate in the Nationals at the Disney Wide World of
Sports Complex.
Morgan Hill – Early Monday morning two Morgan Hill Raiders cheer teams will embark on the adventure of their young lives. At 5am the Midgets (ages 11-15) and Junior Pee Wees (ages 8-11) cheer squads along with 14 chaperones will board a plan bound for Orlando, Fla. where they will participate in the Nationals at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex.
Since October 30 all four Raiders cheer teams have been working hard to raise the $55,000 (roughly $1,200 per person) to send the teams to represent Morgan Hill in the national competition and are very close to reaching that goal. With just two days left, the Raiders are $5,000 away from covering the total cost and will be fundraising right up to the last minute.
“Without a doubt, we’re going to reach the goal,” said Rich Pillips, president of the Morgan Hill Pee Wees League. “We’ve already spent the money booking the plane tickets and hotel rooms. The idea is we will continue fundraising and hopefully cover the entire cost.”
Several local business and corporations have donated money to support the teams and the squads have held car washes. The Chevron on Cochrane Rd gave the team a large donation, donating $2 from each car washed during the squads car washing efforts.
“It has been no small undertaking,” said Phillips. “The girls, all four teams, got out their and worked hard to raise the money. It was mostly their individual effort.”
All four of the Raiders cheer teams had remarkable seasons, as they each qualified for the regional championships, in which teams from across the Pacific Northwest compete. At regionals the Midgets placed first in their division and the Junior Pee Wees took second to advance to the Nationals.
The Midget team has been together for several years and has been trying to get to the Nationals for awhile according to Raiders Cheer Director Jody Conti. All the girls are academically strong students in the Morgan Hill School District and must maintain a 2.0 gpa to participate.
“Its a great group of local kids,” said Conti. “We are hoping they can come back with a first through sixth place finish and the most spirited award. They want it badly.”
The Midget, coached by Shelly Solorio, team usually ages in range from 13-15, but this season an 11-year-old flyer, who has been cheering and participating in gymnastics for several years, was allowed on the team so she could cheer with her older sister.
“It turned out to be a blessing,” explained Conti. “Along with the one boy we have on the squad we were able to up the level of difficulty of the stunts and routines.”
The Junior Pee Wees team is the first novice team for the Raiders and reaching the Nationals under first-year coach Sandra Niebla is an incredible achievement.
“Their choreography is great. They are adorable and have a lot of fun,” said Conti. “They really have a blast. They love the music and the routine. I think that is really why they have gotten this far.”
All the coaches work collaboratively amongst the teams and have a one team, one voice kid of approach, creating a successful program that places well consistently in the region and state.
