Bryan Cheer Team Wins CCA Nationals

Written by: Morgan Clark, staff writer

SALEM, Va.. – The Bryan College cheerleading team traveled to Salem, Va.. to attend CCA Nationals on March 4-5 and brought home eight pieces of hardware. Coach Janice Perron and assistant coach Erin Bell took their team to compete for the first time in Bryan College history and left with a clean sweep. 

The team competed in the college gameday division, where they performed a situational response, a timeout routine and a band chant routine. They placed first in this division, as well as winning grand champions overall – meaning that the Bryan College cheer team had the highest scores out of the entire competition. 

Ellie Bigham placed first in her tumbling solo division. Cameron Taylor, Morgan Clark and Christina Kirby placed first in the senior non-tumbling trio division. Maranda Cook, Cate Carpenter and Cameron Taylor placed first in the sophomore non-tumbling division. Erin Bell and Maranda Cook placed first in the non-tumbling duo division. Kyra Blair, Ellie Bigham and Danielle Asbell placed first in the sophomore tumbling trio division. Ellie Bigham also won the collegiate jump-off.

CCA, more formally known as Christian Cheerleaders of America, is a “sports ministry using the vehicle of cheerleading to evangelize and disciple young people for Christ.” CCA hosts the CCA Christian Cheer Nationals and Collegiate Championship every year, although this was the first year that the competition had been held in Salem. The cheer team traveled to the competition on March 4 and performed on March 5.

Assistant coach Erin Bell had to adapt quickly; Bell was thrown into the team’s game-day routine after several difficulties near the end of the season. She played both the roles of coach and teammate and helped lead the team towards their sweep. Coach Janice Perron also went above and beyond in her determination to help her girls succeed. 

“God has perfect timing. So many things had to come together to make this incredible experience happen. The team competing was first discussed when I was hired, so this has been almost eleven years in the making. God showed up big time for the team and the team stepped up for the challenge. They overcame last-minute personnel changes and personal challenges to work together to make the win possible …. ‘Full send’ and ‘stand’ were our words this year. The team showed so much heart, drive, and tenacious spirit,” said Coach Jan Perron. 

The team plans to continue competing in the future. They would like to thank the Bryan College administration for their support and aid, as well as CME, RC3, and Flight for allowing them to practice in their facilities leading up to the competition. The team would also like to express thanks to the individuals who donated shoes, bought Krispy Kremes and supported them financially. It took a village to send the team to Salem – and all they brought back was a national title. 

Morgan Clark is a senior Communication Media and Culture major. She is a first-year staff writer for the Bryan Triangle. Morgan is a varsity cheerleader for Bryan College.