With only 15 talented cheerleaders, there can be great amount of pressure on them to stand out. Cheerleading is a popular sport, and according to Thoughtco, cheerleading has been around for more than 100 years.

Not only do BHS cheerleaders work hard physically, but they also work hard at balancing their school work. Cheerleading is a big commitment and consumes a lot of free time, but they all enjoy working with their teammates.

“My favorite part about cheer is that it’s a team sport,” sophomore Jalynn Murry said. “I love being able to go to practice to have fun with the squad.”

Being part of the team means you have practice at 3:30 p.m. on Mondays and Thursdays. If your intermediate or advanced you will attend practice at 4:30 p.m with stretching from 5:10 to 5:30 p.m. with practices that consist of anything from conditioning to stunts.

“It is really busy but it’s also a place to get away and have fun with my team,” Murry said. “Sometimes there are hard stunts or pyramids that you can’t hit.”

Cheer injuries are very common due to cheerleaders being thrown several feet in the air. Most injuries consist of back, knee, arm and neck injuries. From 1980 to 2013 cheerleading injury rates went up 440 percent according to Active Kids.

“The whole healing and recovery process was very difficult,” said former cheerleader Elexys Peoples, who injured her arm.“It was hard for me to watch everyone practicing and not be able to help much or do it myself, but I did my best to help in the ways I could.”

The BHS cheer team travel together to competitions where they only have a few minutes to show everyone their talent.

“You rise together and you fall together, and at competitions we have around 2 minutes and 30 seconds to give it everything we got,” Peoples said. “To be good at cheer you must be able to put your faith in others and help each other to succeed.”