Four cheerleading teams from the Tri-City area are headed to a national competition this weekend in Anaheim. Of course, the teams are always jazzed to go, but it’s particularly exciting for Kennedy and Newark Memorial high schools, who qualified for nationals for the first time.

As a send-off, the three teams in Fremont – Kennedy, Irvington and Washington high schools – showed off their routines during a special exhibition Tuesday night. Here are photos from the event:

Above, we see the Kennedy team performing its routine. The school has not had a competitive team in 20-plus years. And yet, in their first year of competitive cheering again, the Titans are headed to nationals, said their coach, Melanie Warden.

Warden also coaches the Irvington High School  team. Below is a shot of Viking team members relaxing during the exhibition:

And let’s not forget about the Washington Huskies. Here, the girls are cheering on a rival team. Nice to see the good sporstmanship on display.

Last, but not least, here’s the team from Newark Memorial High, taken by a parent at an event this year.

According to the team’s adviser, Vicki Gruver, the girls were doing collegiate-level stunts earlier this year. When the team found out that it couldn’t perform such high-level tricks at a high school competition, team members had to revise their routine. Go Cougars!

I often hear cheerleaders, coaches and family members lament that cheerleading is under-appreciated; that competitive cheerleading requires a lot of strength, flexibility and precision, but that the general public has been slow to recognize it as a sport. What do you think?