PRHS new stunt team proves their worth with their placing

PRHS started a stunt team in 2017 and within the first year, went to the first round of CIF with no experience of being a stunt team. Now in their third year and going to CIF twice they are hoping to do the same.

“The team dynamic this year is aggressive and hungry to win. We know we’ve proven to our fellow bearcats that we are a good team for our area, but we want to go further. They work hard at practice but still manage to have fun with each other.” Coach Torri Loney said.

The senior bearcats are especially motivated to clinch the league title this year. Loney’s coaching philosophy is the aspect of leadership within her team and not so much herself.

“ I have really come to understand that it is the coach’s job to teach its leaders how to instill a sense of respect and pride in one’s efforts and final product. I can yell and scream about people working harder or I can have my captains and team leaders remind each other and their teammates of the importance of hard work.” Loney mentioned.

There is much that goes into the sport of stunt. These lady bearcats put in hours of practice to achieve their best. The students now are offered stunt as a sixth period course. With this extra work time, the players are making the most of the time that is offered to them.

“We practice everyday from during 6th period until 5pm. Wednesday’s 3-5. We put in a lot of practice and weightlifting time to be our absolute best,” Senior Maddy Hanauer said.

The expectations for this team are set extremely high according to some of the players. With the exceeded result the last two years, the Bearcats are expected to go a long way this season.

“I think we will do very well this season. We have more groups that are advanced and a lot more tumblers which is what we lacked last season.” Hanauer said.

There are many younger athletes this year on the PRHS stunt team. This provides potential for the future seasons of this game. With the important philosophy of leadership within this team, the seniors and juniors are expected to set examples for the younger student athletes.

“Due to many seniors who were the foundation of our stunt team are going to be ending their stunt career this year, we’ve continually worked to give advice and make sure to help the younger athletes gain the confidence in their skills,” Senior Jeraly Escamilla mentioned.

The team spends a lot of time together each and everyday and they always manage to have a good time.

“My favorite memories all come from practice. Whenever we are doing quarter 4’s and we are hitting all of our stunts and sticking our tumbling just gives off a crazy supportive vibe in the gym and that’s one of the best feelings ever,” Hanauer said.

Hanauer is the first stunt athlete to come out of PRHS as a signed athlete for the sport of stunt. Committing to Alma college for stunt sets a different dynamic for her as she plays her final season at PRHS.

With these Seniors having their last year at PRHS, they want to end with a bang.  

“The majority of our goals consists of being able to perform all levels with no modifications, continuing the League Champion title streak, and be CIF champions. Other than titles, we’ve worked on everyone having healthy competition that allows every person on the team to be able to have levels,” Escamilla said.