Article written by Ainsley Hall and published in The Journal on October 16, 2026, link to article HERE.
Spring Mills High School Cheer has earned a bid to the 2027 National Championship in Orlando, Florida on Feb. 4-7, 2027, becoming one of the first teams from the Eastern Panhandle to qualify. They earned the bid after competing in the West Virginia Game Day competition where they were the state runner-up in the small division, only two points away from first.
In addition to cheering for Spring Mills High School sport teams, the cheerleaders also stay busy practicing and competing in competitions throughout the year and participating in pep rallies. Head Cheer Coach Michelle Dozier has been working with the team since 2020 alongside Assistant Coach Emily Grogg. After seeing all the time and hard work the girls have put into cheer, it means a lot to see them succeed and make history for the school.
“As a coach, it’s more than just rewarding because it’s out of our control,” Dozier said. “When they’re on the floor, we just hope that we have prepared them enough to get them to the mat. So when they’re there, you really have to trust your team and believe that they’re going to make the changes and adapt and hopefully hit, make everything stick, hit all their skills and everything that we’ve done in practice.”
The team includes 26 girls in total, with 13 members on the varsity team. Seniors Zoe Eldridge, Candice Tinsman, Brielle Anderson and Olivia Roccograndi have been members of the varsity cheer team for all four years of high school. They were still in class when they first found out they earned the bid to compete at Nationals. Tinsman said their group chat was going crazy because they all were so excited.
They are all excited to compete alongside teams they’ve only heard about. They look forward to meeting other cheerleaders from all over the country. Not only that, but they are excited for the chance to visit Disney World as a team and make memories that will last a lifetime.
“I hope it puts a message out there because a lot of people think cheer isn’t a sport, and we don’t really do anything,” Roccograndi said. “What they see is us cheering for football or for basketball, so I hope they actually see that we’re doing stuff for us.”
“I definitely hope that at least our community knows how much work we put into this and that we’re not just some people you see on the sidelines cheering for another sport,” Eldridge added.
As they prepare for Nationals, the girls are working hard to shift gears and start polishing their routine. That means going over every stunt, tumble and dance move, making sure everyone is in sync. Every practice they are running through their routine multiple times, sometimes recording themselves and watching it back to find ways to improve.
Going to Nationals also means raising money for the trip. Dozier said it costs around a thousand dollars per student to go, so the team is working hard to find support. They are partnering with local restaurants for spirit nights, putting together popcorn fundraisers, selling frozen lemonade at games and finding sponsors within the community who are interested in supporting the team. In the meantime, they are working hard to improve their skills as they represent Berkeley County on the national stage.