STARKVILLE — Starkville High School cheerleading has experienced success in recent years, doing well at regional and state competitions while sending increasing numbers of cheerleaders to the collegiate ranks.
Much of that success can be credited to Hannah Harris, who led the team for the past four years. After the spring, however, Harris stepped down to focus on her family, creating an opening for a familiar face. In stepped Riesa Blackwell, who led the program from 2016-19.
“I’m excited,” Starkville head coach Riesa Blackwell said. “The program has progressed a lot since I left and that’s our goal is to keep progressing. We’ll continue to focus a lot on school spirit and community spirit, supporting our teams in any way we can and supporting our schools. We’re not just for the teams.”
What was initially planned as an interim head coaching position turned into a full-time position after Blackwell found an opening within the school district, affording her a full-time faculty role, too.
“I was originally stepping in from April to June to help them get through that busy time for cheer,” Blackwell said. “I had volunteered to help, but then a position opened up in the district that I thought I would enjoy.”
Harris, who served as an assistant during Blackwell’s original tenure, helped the Jackets reach new heights. Now back at the helm, Blackwell said she’s excited to see what Starkville can continue to do.
“Coach Harris did some really great things,” Blackwell said. “The program is in a good spot, so really, I’m just coming in and trying to keep it moving in that direction.”
Along with the state competition in December, the team will compete in several other cheer meets this fall, allowing for more opportunities to get adjusted to more intense competition as a 7A school. Blackwell said she thinks a new choreographer will help with that adjustment, but she thinks growing community involvement is important, too.
Beyond competitive success, Blackwell will stress a continued emphasis on school spirit that will hopefully produce even more collegiate cheerleaders.
“We’re here to compete,” Blackwell said. “We’re going to try to improve on that and continue to up the difficulty of our stunts and tumbling, things like that to really prepare our cheerleaders to be competitive at the collegiate level.”
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