COLUMBUS — Coming from a long line of Bulldogs, Heritage Academy senior Lilly Grace Black was undoubtedly going to be the next in her family to go to Mississippi State.
However, she’ll be spending some of that time on the sidelines of Davis Wade Stadium and the baseline of Humphrey Coliseum as she was selected as one of 58 cheerleaders for the 2023-24 season.
Black was selected to next year’s co-ed team of 28 male and female cheerleaders after participating in invite-only tryouts from April 27-29.
“It just set in today,” Black said. “I was just in shock, and now it’s just I’m coming to the realization after I was sent text messages and practice schedules, it’s hitting me.”
On Wednesday, in front of family, friends and classmates, Black officially signed to Mississippi State cheerleading, the culmination of a career in the sport that has spanned more than a decade.
“It took a lot of dedication and hard work,” Black said. “I was supported by my coaches, my family, they all had my back and they made it happen for me. They taught me what to do, what motions to hit, what to fix and helped me get to where I am today.”
Her entrance to the sport began young, training with Adam Davis over at Game Time Athletics in Columbus at 5 years old.
Davis described her as someone who was easy to coach and picked up routines and different moves quickly, allowing her to progress through to a more competitive level by the time middle school and high school came.
“It’s amazing,” Davis said. “It’s such a proud moment in my life that she’s able to start so young and stick through all the way through high school to make it to the collegiate level. It’s just exciting to go see her do other new skills and watch her train with other coaches.”
The goal of cheering at MSU really gained traction for Black as a sophomore at Heritage.
“That was really the year I had my heart set to take my cheerleading career to the next level,” Black said. “I started getting into the gym more and making this my main goal to make this dream of mine since I was five years old come true.”
Patriots varsity cheer sponsor Emily Fowler, who has seen her growth over the past few years at Heritage, was just as excited.
Knowing the pathway it took to get invited to tryouts with the Bulldogs, a process that began earlier in the year with attending cheer clinics and getting those within Mississippi State cheer interested, seeing it pay off made the morning that much more impactful.
“It’s a huge accomplishment,” Fowler said. “She has worked really hard just like any D1 athlete would. She’s put in a lot of work and it’s been a stressful process for her. … She’s our first Heritage Academy cheerleader to get invited and make the co-ed squad at Mississippi State.”
Senior year is soon to be wrapping up for Black, and the only thing that’s left is counting the days until her first practices as a Bulldog, which begin June 1.
“I can’t wait,” Black said.
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