Slideshow: Del Val Cheerleading Nationals

Sara Matthews and Erin Bate

February 28, 2024

@delvalcheerleading

Del Val Cheerleading finished in third place at Finals in Orlando, Florida.

The team arrived in Florida late at night and went straight to bed as they had a long weekend ahead of them. They were excited as they got to stay at the same resort as last year, All-Star Music Resort. (Sara Matthews)

Every chance available, there was a scheduled practice, starting at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex. The team woke up extra early to get practice time at the venue where it would be competing. (Sara Matthews)

To celebrate a long season, each year the team dresses up and goes to a team dinner. This year’s dinner was at Disney Springs’ Planet Hollywood restaurant, which was a big hit. The team dinner is usually in Disney Springs, this way everyone can break off with a few people or family to walk around afterward. (Erin Bate)

The first competition, Pre-lims, was on Saturday morning, which the team entered with high hopes to move on to Semifinals. The team performed a zero deduction routine, advancing to Semifinals in third place. (Sara Matthews)

At Semifinals, the team performed another strong zero deduction routine. The team had to wait at the baseball field for about an hour to find out if they advanced to finals. (Sara Matthews)

The team was announced first, securing its spot in Finals in the top three of the Small Varsity Game-Day division. That night, the team spent time going over simple corrections and made a few small changes to improve its score for Finals. The Del Val cheerleaders performed with so much love for one another and could not have put a better final routine out there, finishing in third place. (Erin Bate)

The last day was spent park-hopping, celebrating the team’s months of hard work and success. The first park of the day was Animal Kingdom, then Magic Kingdom and lastly Epcot. (Erin Bate)

Because of the snow in New Jersey, the team got more time in the parks on its final day and stayed an extra night in Florida. Del Val Cheerleading brought home third place medals and a trophy, along with many memories for the rest of their lives. 2024 UCA Nationals is officially over, and now the team is ready to take on New Jersey States, hoping for a four-peat! (Sara Matthews)

Donate to The Delphi

$100

$2000

Contributed

Our Goal

Your donation will support the student journalists of Delaware Valley Regional High School. Your contribution will allow us to attend conventions, purchase equipment and cover our annual website hosting costs.

About the Contributors

Sara Matthews, Editor-in-chief

Sara is a senior at Del Val who is involved in the National Honor Society, Key Club and Del Val cheerleading. Sara hopes to continue winning contests and awards with “The Delphi” as this is her final year with the school paper. This is her third year writing for “The Delphi,” where she hopes to better the paper as best she can before her high school career is over.

Erin Bate, Reporter

Erin Bate is currently a junior at Del Val and a second year writer for The Delphi. She has been cheering since she was in kindergarten and is a cheerleader at Del Val. She enjoys listening to music, taking her dog on walks and spending time with her friends and family.