After bringing home the Crossroads League title on March 7, Taylor cheer earned its first bid in program history to the National Championship.
The season had ups and downs, but the Trojans were historically successful this year. The team finished in fourth and third just once, with the rest of their meets ending in first or second place finishes.
The Columbia Cougar Classic on Feb. 21 was a standout meet. Taylor posted their highest score as a program with a 93.47, marking only the second time in the team’s history surpassing 90. It was strong enough to take first.
Missouri Valley took second with a score of 86.82, while CL rival Indiana Wesleyan took third, posting a score of 83.20.
“We slowly built up our score over the course of the season and constantly progressed to where we even set a school record,” freshman back spotter Caleb Motsinger said.
Taylor’s Trojan Invitational was another key meet. On Feb. 28, the purple and gray placed second, posting a score of 90.23. Indiana Wesleyan took first place, finishing just 0.47 points in front of their crosstown rivals.
The CL Championship saw Indiana Wesleyan and Taylor meet in yet another highly contested bout. But this time, the Trojans came out on top. By a narrow margin, Taylor hoisted the CL crown for the first time, scoring a 90.63. Indiana Wesleyan followed with a score of 90.24, and Spring Arbor finished third with 89.34 points.
“Indiana Wesleyan has always been our biggest rival, so hearing our average scores, we just knew it was going to be tight,” junior tumbler Brey Knavel said.
Despite their success, this team has not lacked challenges. Over the course of the season, the team has seen the departure of seven of its members. The exodus forced them to rethink their routine.
Members have needed to adapt as they stepped into new roles within the team. They redid their routine, formations and positions.
“We started the year with 20 people on mat, which put us in a higher difficulty range,” Knavel said. “We had to have people try a bunch of different new things. It was really cool to see how people stepped into those new positions and grow as athletes.”
The team has already accomplished an impressive season. They will have an opportunity to compete at nationals which is a feat the team has never accomplished beforehand.
Last season, the Trojans were right on the doorstep of a nationals appearance but were the first team left out of the competition.
“This team faced adversity, but we didn’t let it get to us,” Motsinger said. “We brought everything we had and had amazing energy when we went to (the) CL championship, and we hope to bring that same energy to Kansas for nationals.”
Taylor will head to the NAIA National Championships on March 27 in Topeka, Kansas. They look to make history yet again.
