"This year most sports were pushed to the second semester, so there were a bunch of sports going at the same time," UTSA cheer coach Gabriel Ortiz said. "We had to be very flexible as a team in order to get the time and space we needed. On top of that, we had a late start to the season due to our university's protocols, but I am glad we had the opportunity to compete and have a somewhat normal year."
Returning to UTSA in the fall with the COVID-19 protocols in place, the plan for the year was uncertain regarding the squad's usual performance schedule.
"We were very blessed that we could actually cheer on the sideline," Ortiz said. "We were the first cheer team to cheer on the sideline in the USA, which is amazing. Showing the fans what we were capable of and putting on a show for them really helped get us ready to compete."
UTSA has been nationally ranked in previous seasons, recording back-to-back top-five finishes at the NCA National Championships the previous two years.
"We were looking strong and ready to do well at competition a year ago," Ortiz said. "Then COVID happened. Unfortunately, we were not able to showcase our skills and the hard work we had put in. This year the athletes were hungry to get back and compete to win. There were a lot of factors against us, but we all pushed through the adversity to reach a common goal. There was so much uncertainty throughout the whole year, but I know I was confident that in the end we would all come together and put on a solid routine for each other."
Earning a spot on the mat is a competition within the squad. Only 20 athletes, per NCA rules, are allowed on the mat during the routine. Competing in the small coed division, the squad is only allowed four male athletes on the mat. With eight male athletes on the roster, competition within the squad is important to finding the right competition components.
Due to the pandemic, this year's NCA competition was held virtually by video submissions from each competing squad. Preliminary scores and feedback were sent to each squad following the initial video submission. Squads were then given additional time to prepare for the final competition.
"Competition routines are scored on the difficulty of the skills and the level of execution of the skills," Ortiz said. "We are required to stunt, tumble, pyramids, jumps, performance motions, basket tosses and execute everything clean and precise all within two minutes and 15 seconds. Our routine goes so fast between skills. It's insane, but it is also why we scored high. The difficulty of our routine mixed with the execution and speed of our routine worked in our favor."
UTSA received a final score of 95.13 on a 100-point scoring system. Continuing the success from the previous seasons, the squad scored in the highest percentile, beating the average score of most teams in the high 80s and low 90s.
"Since we had taken so much time off due to the shutdown and then the late start to our practices, we definitely had to push harder and quicker than we had in the past to make up for the lost time," Ortiz said. "Once the athletes committed to hitting zero as a team, they were able to make it happen."
After securing a championship trophy once again, the squad is gearing up for next season. Following the mantra, Kaizen, meaning continuous improvement, UTSA cheer is focusing on maintaining the level of competition and skill that has become synonymous with the squad.
"As the new season approaches, we know that it's easier to win, but harder to keep the crown," Ortiz said. "We will definitely not rely on this previous win but continue to grow as a team and family. We know that we can all continue to grow in something and every day we have an opportunity to be point-one percent better than the previous day. This new season will continue our tradition of excellence and we will continue to prove that UTSA Cheer is the greatest Roadrunner tradition."
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A look back at UTSA Cheer's second national title - UTSA Athletics
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