The W.F. West High School cheerleading squad rocked Battle Ground High School’s gym on their way to a 2A non-tumbling medium state title with their routine on Friday, Jan. 24, at the WIAA State Cheer Championships.

The Friday performance by the Bearcats garnered a loud reaction from the crowd as well as plenty of congratulations from fellow cheerleaders in the competition.

The next day, the Bearcats pumped up the game day atmosphere despite some technical difficulties to the soundtrack. The technical difficulties created a fan-favorite moment as the cheerleaders danced on the mat and made a total of three “welcome to the mat” entrees, with the crowd responding louder and louder each time. They earned third overall in the 2A/3A game day large category.

“You know, an amazing experience against some tough teams, the same teams we go against today in the same division. We have a lot of competition to stack up to tonight,” Bearcats head coach Serena Schoelkopf said after Saturday’s performance. “We had a little mishap with our music, but the girls came through with lots of energy each time more and more.”

After their state title performance on Friday, Schoelkopf said she is proud of her freshmen cheerleaders and returners to the squad.

“They did their jobs and performed how they know they can perform,” she said as cheerleaders from other teams passed by and expressed how well the Bearcats performed. “It just makes me so proud because they’ve worked really hard. They’ve had a lot of ups and downs, and they’re very busy. They worked so many assemblies, and it’s really hard to be at the same level as other teams because we have so much to do for the school, which we enjoy.”

After the support poured in from back home when news of the state title broke out, Schoelkopf said the community of Chehalis means a lot to her.

“It’s such a great community,” she said. “Everybody’s there for each other. We all support each other. We support each other’s kids, you know. It takes a village and it truly is a small town that believes in helping everybody out. Everybody’s kids are our kids.”