Hundreds of people gathered to watch the state’s best high school cheerleaders at the Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) Cheerleading competition in January.
This was an especially important day for the Desert Vista High School Cheer team, whose season was filled with triumph, history-making moments and many injuries.
The team waited backstage as their hype song played, and that was their cue to step onto the mat.
“Hey Thunder! Let’s Roll! Yell our colors, they’re navy, gold!” The team yelled during their routine, filled with high-flying stunts and tumbling.
However, one challenge remained to complete this routine: nailing their second elite — something that gave the team trouble all season.
The second elite is a stunt where the flyer does a backwalkover, which is a backbend onto her hands with her feet kicking over. Her feet are then caught by her teammates, who lift her into the air. While being lifted, the flyer does a full-and-a-quarter turn to the top.
The pressure was on, and the girls delivered, completing the second elite with perfection.
“When they hit those, I dropped to my knees and had instant tears, because at that moment I knew we had won,” says Michael Miller, Desert Vista High School Cheer Program Varsity Head Coach and Program Director.
The team hit their final pyramid, finishing their routine, jumping and hugging each other in excitement.
“It was our best performance we’ve ever done,” says Melanie Maya, a recent Desert Vista High School graduate who was a flyer and captain of the cheer team. “I just felt very lucky that I was able to experience that, and I just knew that everything I put towards DV cheer was worth it.”
Soon, it was announced that Desert Vista High School was the AIA Division 1 Small All-Girl Cheer Champions. “We had hit zero. So they didn’t find anything wrong with our routine,” says Miller.
This was the first time in program history that Desert Vista High School hit zero at state finals, giving a perfect performance when it mattered the most.
The Desert Vista High School cheerleaders went on to compete in the Universal Cheer Association (UCA) National High School Cheerleading Championship in Orlando, Florida, where the junior varsity team placed 6th out of 13th in their division, and the varsity team ranked 38th out of 113 teams in their division.
Getting the Desert Vista High School cheer program to where it is today is an accomplishment Miller is proud of.
After joining the program in 2022, he immediately sat down with the girls and reviewed their goals. One was to compete in the Advanced Division at Nationals, which they accomplished that season.
“That team crawled, so the following team could walk, so the following team could jog, so the team that won state could run,” says Miller.
The dedication, skill level and passion for the cheer program only continued to rise.
Maya was a part of the varsity team all four years in high school. She says the cheer program has helped her grow as a leader and communicator.
“It’s really important to communicate with your team and have a good bond with each other because everyone wants the same thing. Everyone wants to watch each other succeed and have that feeling that all the work that they put in was worth it,” says Maya.
Miller hopes to continue the cheer program's success. “My goal is to continue to build a program that the girls are excited to be part of and want to be part of and want to work for.”
To learn more about the Desert Vista High School Cheer Program, visit their Instagram page @DVThunderCheer.
“My goal is to continue to build a program that the girls are excited to be part of and want to be part of and want to work for.” - Coach Michael Miller