Hermon High School annexed its fourth straight Class B cheerleading state championship Saturday afternoon with a near-flawless exhibition at the Augusta Civic Center.
The Hawks tallied 87 points to edge rival Ellsworth by 0.8 points.
Ten-time Class B South champ Medomak Valley of Waldboro finished third with 82.4 points followed by Leavitt of Turner (80.4), Presque Isle (76.5), Morse of Bath (75.7), Brewer (72.7), John Bapst of Bangor (69.6), Old Town (67.9), Gray-New Gloucester (67.8), Erskine Academy of South China (63.4) and Freeport (52.1).
“This is the best we’ve ever done,” Hermon coach Kristie Reed said. “They knew every single point counted.
“They’ve worked hard all season and to see it all come together at the end like this is awesome,” Reed added.
“We didn’t make any mistakes. It was perfect.” said Hermon’s Brooklyn Brown, who is the team’s only senior.
Brown pointed out that the team had to switch around several elements in its routine between the regionals two weeks ago and the states.
“We hadn’t been hitting [a stunt], but we hit it today. It was great,” Brown said.
Brown said being the only senior meant she had to assume a leadership role and that it was a joy leading this team.
“The girls meshed together. They have a special place in my heart,” Brown said.
Hermon’s tumbling was spot-on, and the Hawks’ pyramids were constructed with precision and included some creative moves involving the flyers.
The other members of the Hermon team are Riley Perry, Alanna Berube, Jasmine Boulier, Allyson Coxson, Kalley Curry, Cali Cyr, Madison Despault, Megan Dorr, Hailey Gogan, Madison Higgins, Alexis Raymond, Lyndsee Reed, Michaela Saulter, Madison Smith, Caitlin Whitehouse and Torria Wittmer. Reed is assisted by Kaitlinn Turner and Christina Paradis.
Ellsworth coach Kathryn Dickens said Hermon was phenomenal. She also was pleased with her team’s showing.
“We performed very well. I was very happy. It was one of our best performances of the year. We’ve had to overcome a lot of injuries and sickness,” Dickens said.
Ellsworth had a dramatic improvement of nearly 20 points from the regionals. The Eagles scored 67.7 to finish third in the regionals but racked up 86.2 points on Saturday.
The Ellsworth team is composed of Abigail Bland, Anna Brown, Brooke Carver, Elizabeth Frost, Savannah Grant, Tanner Hardison, Laura Jude, Maddie Nida, Bailey Peterson, Alexis Rossi, Mariah Rossi, Mercedes Ulichny and Emma Whitney.
Melanie Omlor-Fox co-coaches the team with Dickens.
Presque Isle posted a nine-point improvement from the regionals.