This past weekend, the competitive Gryphon cheer squad competed at the UCA National Cheerleading Championship in Orlando, Fla. For the first time in school history, the squad advanced to the semi-finals.

“This season has had a ton of ups and downs,” said senior Hallie Gillam, “so to come back like that and make it farther than any other varsity cheer team in St. George’s history was the most satisfying and exciting thing that could’ve happened.”

Initially, the judges made a mistake while calculating the results, so the Gryphons were not announced to advance to the semi-finals.

“We were devastated,” said senior Ashley McDuffie. “As a senior tradition, the seniors jumped into the pool with our uniforms on since it would be the last time we were wearing our uniforms. About 15 minutes after jumping into the pool, we got the call that we made it into semis after all.”

McDuffie said that the girls had to wake up early the next morning to blow dry their uniforms because they were soaking wet.

“We had so much fun performing at semis because we were just so happy and excited to be there,” said McDuffie. “It really was the trip of a lifetime.”