By: Danni Thompson
A mural inside the Georgia Southern cheer practice room covers the wall above the 9-panel cheer mat. The space serves as the team's daily practice site as they prepare for nationals.
A stunt group on the GSU all-girl cheer team made up of seniors Megan Morris, Marissa Taylor, Sophia Parry, and freshman Maci Nabus stretch on the mat before stunt practice. Warming up helps prevent injuries before practicing advanced skills.
Maci, the stunt group's flyer, warms up her body positions before stunting. Flexibility is essential for flyers performing high-level stunts.
Bases Megan, Marissa, and Sophia work on perfecting their grips while they perform a few warm up stunts. Strong hand placement is important for safety and stability when stunting.
The group held this position for a while. This allows the bases to warm up their muscles and get a good idea of where they need to grip the foot.
The stunt group encourages one another and sets their positions before attempting the skill. The athletes run through each stunt repeatedly to build consistency before nationals.
Bases throw Maci into the air during a rewind. This is a skill that they need to be perfected before performing it at nationals.
The bases execute the skill with perfect technique. Years of training has gone into being able to hit this high-level skill with such ease.
The stunt group hits a full extension to complete the rewind stunt, Maci sticking the landing with a smile. "Every rep counts when we are getting close to nationals," said Maci.
Maci locks into her body position while balancing above her teammates. Flyers rely heavily on control and balance to hold their stunts steady.
Maci transitions from a scale to a heel stretch to finish the stunt with a "Go Eagles" wave. Her bases are working hard under her to maintain stability and finish strong.
Bases catch their flyer as she dismounts from the stunt leaving Megan with a sore muscle. Nationals season puts a lot of stress on the body, and resting between reps is important.
The group resets after a quick break to rest and attempts their hardest stunt, a backhand spring up. This stunt requires great skill.
Springing back onto her hands, Maci lands in the perfect position for her bases to get just the right grip on her. A lot of effort is exuded in this step of the stunt.
Maci hits the top of the stunt while her bases prepare to catch her body when she comes down. Precision and confidence are key parts of a collegiate cheer routine.
Transitioning to one man stunts, Megan locks her grips together before lifting Maci into the air. A strong start is the foundation of the one man stunt.
The group switches bases and receives corrections from one another during the next rep. Small adjustments can improve the overall execution of the routine.
Megan ends practice with a few tumbling reps of her round-off backhand spring tuck. She has had this skill for years but says that it is important she keeps up with her technique.
