OCC Squads Cheering National Contest Wins

Orange Coast College’s coed cheer and dance squads have captured national titles at the Universal Cheerleading Assn.’s annual competition in Orlando, Fla.--the cheer squad winning for the second year in a row.

“Twelve months ago, no one had ever heard of Orange Coast College at the national level in dance and cheerleading,” said team advisor Joycelyn Groot. “Now everyone knows who we are.”

The invitational, held at Walt Disney World over the weekend, is considered the nation’s premier cheerleading event, with 180 teams and 1,200 cheerleaders. ESPN will televise it this spring.

OCC’s cheer squad competed in the community college division and the dance team entered the open division dominated by four-year universities. Both teams had to qualify for the event with videotapes of their best routines.

“Our goal was to win a national championship in both divisions this year, but we knew that was a long shot,” Groot said. “Our kids did a great job, however, turning in spectacular performances. We are absolutely elated.”

The teams from Costa Mesa were under particular pressure because they performed Friday morning after arriving in Orlando late Thursday. The athletes were scheduled to perform Saturday, but had to go before judges a day early to accommodate schedule changes, said Jim Carnett, a college spokesman.

“They didn’t have a lot of time to rest up and prepare for it,” Carnett said. “They were thrust right into the competition and didn’t have a lot of time to think or worry.”

This is the second year in a row the cheer squad has won first place. The dance team was second last year.