Confusion on the Court

CHEERING FOR THE CAMERA

The SHS cheerteam trains for their virtual 2021 competition state championship.

Photo by Wyatt Leoni

Above: Cheer team practices the routine they will preform for the state competition.

By Wyatt Leoni

Photo & Announcements Editor

Just coming out of 2020, the Sandpoint High School cheer team is preparing to start their 2021 competition season. Though cheer is a year round sport, it is broken into two different seasons, including sideline cheer, which is cheerleading at sporting events like football, basketball, and wrestling, and competition season. This is when all different cheer teams around the state compete to see who is the best. The team has been working very hard together to better themselves, improve communication, gain perseverance, and hopefully make their way to the state championship. Due to Covid-19, this year’s state championship will be done virtually. Meaning, that the cheer teams will compete from their own schools, and they will be judged via a video recording of their performance routines. This is done to reduce the spread and exposure of Covid-19. Also because of Covid-19, the team was not able to practice over the late spring and summer of last year. This has made it difficult for the team, the only reason being they didn’t receive the practice time they should have for this season, causing them to be slightly behind. Cheer is a tough sport, these cheerleaders go through intense practice and conditioning. They also have to work diligently with each other to improve communication, one of the most important parts of cheerleading. Cheer, being such a physically and mentally demanding sport, has a lot to teach. According to Max Knight, new member to the cheer team, you really have to slow down, be able to critique yourself, and beware of timing and your surroundings. Cheerleader Olivia Dyk said cheer has taught her “time management, how to work with hard situations, and how to deal with let downs.” For this team, it would mean the world to win state this year. They have put in so much work, and have been practicing almost everyday of the week. The SHS Cheer Captain, Cori Lester, has been working very hard with the team, teaching them individually what to work on and how they can improve themselves. Olivia Dyk, when asked about state, said, “they worked very hard last year, and are working even harder this year, and winning would let them feel like they are doing something valuable with their time, and it wasn’t all for nothing.”

CONFUSION ON THE COURT

A look into this years basketball season, COVID precautions, and a new coach mid season

By Lucy Allen

Multimedia & Reviews Editor

Winter sports have taken a hard hit this season because of COVID regulations. Games have been cancelled and new rules have been put into place eliminating fans and increasing sanitization. The boys basketball team has also experienced the change of energy during their games as a result of no spectators. “The fans are fun to be around because they change the momentum of the game at any second,” said varsity player Ethan Butler. However, Butler has found a positive from this situation. “We can play a lot more freely knowing there aren’t a couple hundred people watching you in person,” he said. Another challenge the team has encountered was their coach quitting, leaving the team questioning who was going to take over. Mike Roos stepped up for the coaching job. The transition to a new coach mid season has been tricky with the players having to adjust to a new coaching style. Butler explained, “We have changed the offense up a little and the coaching style has changed as well. It is hard to transition mid season to a new coach but I think the team is making the most of our season and our time on the floor.” The boys also don’t get to have big team dinners this year like they normally would. Butler said that “This year has been a challenge from games being cancelled due to COVID and having a coaching change mid season, but we are all getting better and moving forward.”