CMU cheer partner stunt finish eighth in country
The Central Michigan coed cheer team placed sixth in the nation earlier this month at the Universal Cheerleader Association Nationals at the Walt Disney World’s Wide World of Sports Jan. 13-15. in Orlando, Fla.
Senior Carter Kiogima and junior Jessy Howe took eighth-place in the country for the partner stunt competition that same weekend.
“It feels great to put a spotlight on CMU athletics," Howe said. "And represent that the CMU coed cheer team is a very committed and hard-working team, with great talent."
The cheer program takes great pleasure in its national accomplishments.
“It was extremely gratifying to see Jessy and Carter be so successful,” coach Patrick Beirne said. “They worked so hard and overcame tremendous adversity to accomplish their goals.”
Kiogima said the competition gave opportunity for some of the best cheerleaders in the nation to showcase their talents, and is one of the highest honors that a collegiate cheerleader can take part in.
“The partner stunt competition has been one of my dreams since I began cheerleading at CMU,” he said.
Although it was the first time they had participated in the event, it was not the first time preparing for their dream.
The couple made a run for the competition last year, but Kiogima was sidelined with a broken leg.
“It was such an unfortunate thing to happen when we had been working so hard for something we both wanted so bad,” Howe said.
No one was certain on whether or not Kiogima would return again to pursue his passion for cheerleading. After surgery, time on crutches and rehab, he was back this year. Kiogima’s desire to continue to chase his dream was not doubted by anyone, including himself.
“I recovered, we put in hours of extra time outside of our team practices to get this opportunity,” Kiogima said.
Beirne said that these two are an enormous part of the team’s success and that they perform at a caliber that equal to some of the greatest collegiate cheerleaders in the country.
“Their (Kiogima and Howe) excellence has a very positive effect on the performance of the rest of their teammates,” she said.
Beirne said he takes pride in his work with the CMU cheer team.
“It is very hard for words to describe what it means for this program to have a coach like Pat,” Kiogima said. “We’ve been able to see first hand at what an amazing program he has created in the last several years.”
The cheer team is doing big things this year. Beirne and company plan to continue their success not only this year, but for many more years down the road.
