IESA Headlines

2017 IESA Cheerleading Championships Set For Saturday, January 21

BLOOMINGTON – Nearly 3,000 cheerleaders will showcase their talents at the 16th annual Illinois Elementary School Association (IESA) State Cheerleading Championships which will be held on Saturday, January 21 in the Exhibit Hall of the Peoria Civic Center. A record number of schools from throughout the state will be in attendance. There will be 93 performances from 82 different schools on Saturday. There are two event categories of competition in IESA cheerleading. One is Routine (with three divisions based on squad size) and the other is Cheer (with two divisions based on squad size). In the Routine category, the Small Team division is for school squads with 5-12 cheerleaders, the Medium Team division is for school squads with 13-16 members, and the Large Team division is for squads with 17-25 members. In the Cheer category, the Small Team division is for school squads with no more than 12 members and the Large Team division is for school squads with 13-25 cheerleaders. There are some schools that participate in both of the divisions--Routine and Cheer.

The 2017 Championships get under way at 9:00 a.m. in the Exhibit Hall. Tickets to the Championships will be on sale at the Peoria Civic Center. Admission is $8.00 for adults, $4.00 for senior citizens and students K-8. Preschoolers are admitted free. Admission gates open at 8:00 a.m.

This year's schedule of events will be:

Note: The awards ceremonies will follow the final performance in the respective category. Times listed for the award ceremonies are approximate.

In Cheer, there are 10 Small Team squads scheduled to compete, along with 11 Large Team squads. In Routine, there are 34 Small Team squads scheduled to compete, 23 Medium Team squads, and 15 Large Team squads.

Following is a breakdown of what is involved in each category:

Cheer – The squad performs without music for a time period from 1:30-2:00 minutes in length. The performance may include stunts, tumbling and jumps. A school may enter either the small team or large team division.

Routine – The squad performs a routine with music for a time period from 1:30-3:00 minutes in length. The normal full routine includes music, a cheerleading/sideline portion, and generally more music to finish the routine. The music portion of the routine cannot exceed 1:30. A school may enter the small team, medium team or large team division in the event.

Here is a brief look at each of the divisions:

Small Team Cheer

The 2016 small team champion, Bradley Central, will be looking for their 5th consecutive small team cheer title after capturing the team title in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016. They are scheduled to perform at 9:48 a.m. Last year's runner-up in the small team cheer, Farmington Central, is performing in the large team cheer category this year. The third place finisher last year, Jacksonville Turner, follows the Bradley Central performance. Shelbyville Moulton will once again be performing in this category. The Rams won seven consecutive first place titles in Small Team Cheer, from 2001-2007. They perform at 9:16 Saturday morning. Minooka, last year's large team cheer champion, has dropped down to the small team cheer division this year and will perform at 9:32. Given these changes, the small team cheer division is sure to provide a lot of surprises and excitement.

Large Team Cheer

With last year's champion, Minooka, moving to the small team cheer division and the 2nd place finisher from last year, Shorewood Troy not participating in this division this year, the Large Team Cheer championship division is wide open. Dunlap MS is the highest returning squad from last year and they will perform at 10:27 a.m. The Large Team action begins with Chicago Learn Hunter Perkins set to perform at 10:14 a.m.

Small Team Routine

The category with the most teams performing (34) will kick things off in the Saturday afternoon session at 1:30 when Morris Saratoga will take the floor. Williamsville will wrap up the day's performances when they take the floor at 5:21. In between, 32 other schools will showcase their talents on the big blue mat inside Exhibit Hall C of the Peoria Civic Center. Last year's champion, Lockport Kelvin Grove will be looking for a 3-peat as they perform at 3:12. Paris Crestwood which captured 2nd place last year in this category performs at 4:31. Last year's 3rd place winner, Bradley Central will perform at 1:56 p.m. There will be three trophies given in the category since there are at least 20 schools participating in the category. Who knows which school will take home 1st place honors this year but with 34 total schools competing, the Exhibit Hall be loud and exciting.

Medium Team Routine

Competition in the Medium Team Routine division begins at 1:43 p.m. when Shorewood Troy will take the floor. Last year's champion, Lake Zurich North, will perform at 4:27 while last year's 2nd place finisher, Lemont Old Quarry will perform at 4:40 p.m. There are 21 other Medium Team performances Saturday afternoon. The Medium Team competition is always very good and fans will want to watch closely to see which one of the 23 teams takes home 1st or 2nd place.

Large Team Routine

All of the Large Team Routine performances will take place in the morning session starting at 9:04 a.m. Fans will want to be in their seats to see some excellent performances Saturday morning. With 15 total teams participating and the possibility of 25 cheerleaders being on the mat for each school performing, any one of the participating schools has a chance to take home a trophy. Saturday morning will be loud and crowded inside Exhibit Hall C at the Peoria Civic Center. Notable schools participating in this division and their performance times include Frankfort Hickory Creek (9:28); Edwardsville Lincoln (9:44); Frankfort Summit Hill (10:31); and Homer Glen Homer (10:39)

All times are tentative and subject to change. Please refer to the on-line schedule for most up-to-date times.

The order of competition in each event and judging criteria is on the Cheerleading Page of the IESA Web site. Go to www.iesa.org for complete information regarding the 2017 IESA Cheerleading Championships. Click on the underlined "Cheer" in the box at the top of the page. Once on the Cheerleading home page, you can click on the underlined “Order of Competition” to view the performance schedule for all squads by event. Results of the competition will be posted Saturday evening.

For more information, please contact the Cheer Administrator, Leslie Alappattu at 309-829-0114 or leslie@iesa.org.