Coupeville Sports

Kiara Mercedes

Kiara Mercedes radiates pep and warmth.

Much like older sister Kylie Marie, the Coupeville High School freshman was seemingly born to be a cheerleader, bringing a natural, unforced sunniness to everything she does.

Already an established cheer vet at a young age, Kiara is being reunited with her sister this year as a member of the Wolf squad. The duo previously worked together in junior cheer.

“Kylie has been a big part in the drive behind my cheering,” Kiara said. “If it wasn’t for her I’d sure enjoy cheer, but she helps me focus on being dedicated. She inspires me to work harder.”

And that hard works pays off when CHS rolls out a virtually seamless performance.

“I love the fact that we all work together to become part of a “machine,” Kiara said. “I get to lift others up. We are a family and I just love how that feels.”

Just don’t be one of the non-believers who try to tell her what she does is an “activity” and not a true sport.

The longtime soccer player, who is taking off this season to focus fully on cheer (“Oh! I love soccer! I’ve done it since I was eight … I think this is the first year I haven’t participated in it, but to me it’s worth it”) doesn’t have time for your doubts.

“I don’t think people understand how hard we actually work,” Kiara said. “On TV and in movies cheerleaders are portrayed as these cute, ditzy, half-brained mean girls. Which is completely opposite of our outlook as a team.

“We work for months in advance of the first football game,” she added. “I’d say we work just as hard and as long as every other sport.”

When she’s not hard at work perfecting her stunts, she enjoys the music of One Direction (“It’s kinda corny, but it makes me wanna dance!”), and like her sister and parents, is a proud member of the Mormon faith.

“My sister is a huge part of what I do. Also, my parents and the way they raised me,” Kiara said. “I grew up in the Mormon church, and I absolutely love it! It’s formed me into the person that I am and I wouldn’t want it any other way!

“I go to church, which is an awesome way to spend my Sunday!”

Read Full Post »

Brittani Wilkinson

“I enjoy cheer, because we are like a family. A very large, 40-person family!”

Hailing from her own reasonably well-sized family, Coupeville High School junior Brittani Wilkinson knows about large family units.

An aunt to two utterly adorable little girls (the daughters of older siblings, and former Wolf athletes, Riley and Courtney Boyd), Wilkinson always brings her love of family to the field and gym, where she has it reinforced on a daily basis.

“I have cheered since my freshman year. I started cheering because I did elementary cheer and always watched the older cheerleaders and wanted to be just like them,” Wilkinson said. “Nobody ever gets put down, and we are always smiling!

“My favorite thing to do is stunt,” she added. “I love the challenge of doing new things, and the feeling you get when you do it perfectly.”

Wilkinson was originally a two-sport athlete, as she joined her older sister, one of the scrappiest of Wolves on the hard-court, as a hoops player. For a bit, at least.

“I played basketball as a middle schooler, trying to follow in my sister’s footsteps, but it wasn’t for me,” Wilkinson said. “So, I’m just a cheerleader now!”

And one who knows deep down in her bones that she is now, and always will be, an athlete when she puts on the uniform.

“We may not be running down the court or field, but we do have hard work,” Wilkinson said. “We have to work hard to perform at our best. Constantly moving, dancing, cheering and stunting.”

A huge fan of Ryan Gosling gettin’ all mushy in “The Notebook” (“Even after seeing it a million times, I cry every single time”) who generally listens to a mix of country and pop, Wilkinson also enjoys solving a few equations.

“I love math!,” she said. “I know, nerdy-sounding. But, ever since I was little, it has come naturally to me.”

With a large supporting cast, both on the Wolf squad and at home, she benefits greatly from always having someone to turn to.

“My big sister, Courtney, is always there for me, and I can talk to her whenever I need,” Wilkinson said. “No matter what it’s about, she always has the best advice.

“My mom and dad have also been a huge impact on my life,” she added. “They always support me on my decisions, and always have my back. They have helped me through so much, and I don’t know what I would do without them.”

Read Full Post »

Payton Wilson

Get rid of your stereotypes or Payton Wilson will shatter them for you.

The Coupeville High School freshman is taking great delight in showing the world that cheerleading, and the athletes who participate in it, are much more than the doubters think they are.

“I started cheering because I wanted to prove people wrong and break the stereotype of “snooty dumb cheerleaders”,” Wilson said. “Most people were shocked when I joined. I guess I never seemed like the girly type. But you don’t need to be girly to be a cheerleader. Trust me!”

A newcomer to the sport, she is embracing just about everything that comes with joining Sylvia Arnold’s always-large squad.

“There’s so many things I enjoy about cheer,” Wilson said. ” First of all, the uniforms. But who doesn’t love that part?

“I love that we get to act completely ridiculous in order to get the crowd really going,” she added. “I love that no matter what your feelings are towards another girl, once you step in that gym, we’re all one big family. No words can describe how grateful I am for my cheer sisters.”

It’s a point that’s been brought up often, but, regardless of whether CHS officials want to recognize cheer for what it is — a sport, not an activity — the athletes involved see it that way. Wilson eloquently provides a well-reasoned defense for that belief.

“I’ve always thought of cheer as a sport,” she said. “Once again, this is where the stereotypes come in. Most people think we’re just girls with pom poms yelling at the crowd. NOT TRUE!! We work our butts off!

“There’s 40 cheerleaders this year. Lots of them are beginners, but they know their stuff,” Wilson added. “We’ve learned 40 cheers, three dances, we’ve learned new ways to stunt, and we learned how to work together.”

Wilson, who would love to one day earn a spot on the sidelines cheering for the Seattle Seahawks, sees her sport as a lifetime one.

“A lot of people think it’s not a sport because you can’t have a big future with cheering. Well, they’re wrong,” Wilson said. “Sure, you won’t get recognized as much as a football player, but hey, if you’re having fun, who cares!

“We work just as hard, memorize as many “plays,” and we can have a future in cheering,” she added. “As cheerleaders, we have to learn how to play football so we know what cheers to call. If you put me out on that field, I could show those boys how its done!”

A dance veteran (“I really love to dance. I danced for 10 years and I wish I could still be doing it today”), Wilson also has a hidden academic talent, which helps her to express her feelings both in motion and words.

“Honestly, I love English. I love to write. Nobody knows that, but I do,” Wilson said.

While her mom is the biggest day-to-day influence in her life (“She has supported me, and helped me get through a lot. And I know she’ll be cheering me on at every game), Wilson’s newest role model is her coach. If this is Arnold’s last year on the sideline, as is widely believed, she is setting the youngest of her Wolves up for a lifetime of success.

“Ms. Sylvia, ever since I started cheer, I fell in love with her ways of teaching,” Wilson said. “She’s not just our coach, she’s our cheer mom. And we all love her to death!

“She’s very supportive and she knows what it’s like. It’s okay to mess up, it’s okay to forget. As long as we are truly trying our best, she’s happy,” she added. “Sometimes she’ll even do the dances with us. It’s awesome! She has taught me that no matter what goes on in our own worlds, we’re always here for each other. All 40 of us!”

Read Full Post »