New school, new coaches, new teams. This our first year in the new school with new coaches and so far the cheer team has started off with a bang. The cheer team had an amazing football season, and continues to have great basketball season. To get perspective on how others felt about the new team I asked the coaches, cheerleaders and a few basketball players how they felt about the new cheer squad.

I ask the coaches to tell us about themselves. How did you become a coach? What is your favorite part about being a coach?

Kari Bowie (Coach Kay): Working in the medical field, mom, in school obtaining my bachelor’s degree and head coach of the varsity cheer squad. Cheer has been apart of my life since I was nine and has always had a special place in my heart.

I did a small stint in coaching cheer right out of high school and have always wanted the opportunity to become involved in the sport since. I was given that opportunity when my old coach came to me and asked if I would be interested in coaching the pinole valley cheer team. I was excited and nervous to take this on as it has been many years but so happy I made the choice to go forward with it.

The best part of coaching for me is our team. Seeing all the hard work they put in and how far we’ve come as a team keeps me going and wanting to go harder for them. When we started this journey together back in June of 2019 there was so much uncertainty and you could feel the lack of trust from the girls. They had all been through a lot with previous coaches and former cheerleaders. So it has been a long tough road and while we still have work to do there has been so much growth. When I get feedback on how good they look as a squad and how excited people are about them it makes me smile so big. I also take pride in knowing that myself and coach KC are making a difference in their lives regardless of how big or small. We have some girls on the team who are struggling in life whether it be academically, personal or their home life so knowing that we are apart of something positive for them is an amazing feeling.

Kurita Powell (Coach KC): I have been working in the medical field x 10 years and currently in school to obtain my bachelor’s degree in Healthcare Administration. I began to cheer when I was 10 years old and loved every bit of it. When Coach K offered me the opportunity to become her assistant coach I quickly jumped at the chance. The best part of coaching our team is the amazing young ladies that we have the opportunity to work with every day. Being able to not only teach them cheer but also help them with life lessons that they can carry way past high school. The road has not been easy since we began in 2019 but we have definitely smoothed out a lot of the rough areas and I look forward to the growth in not only the young women we work with but the growth in Coach K and me also.

I also asked to of my teammates why do they cheer? What’s their favorite part of being a cheerleader? and what is the hardest part?

Michelle: I cheer because it keeps me active and this year is my last chance to before I go off to college. My favorite part about cheer is definitely basketball games where the crowd gets just as hyped up as the cheerleaders are. I also like learning new routines because it’s fun seeing something new come together. The hardest part would be that I have a super busy life so fitting cheer into it can be hard. Getting 30 something girls on one page is also a big challenge at practices and games but we’re getting there.

Angelina: I cheer because I’ve been dancing since I was really little and cheer is a sport that includes dance and I love cheering for football and basketball games. My favorite part of cheer is watching the games and coming up with the routines because the process although long is something I always look forward too. The hardest part for me is probably staying motivated. It can be really hard to stay motivated when I also work and have homework but whenever we cheer at games I’m reminded of how much I love to cheer.

Last I asked basketball players how do you feel about the new cheer team. Does it make a difference when the cheerleaders are there?

Alex: I like the cheer team and how they hype up our basketball games and give us momentum during the game and yes they definitely make a difference when they cheer at our games.

Corrine: I think the new cheer team is very young, full of energy and has a lot of potential. I love it when they go to the games and cheer and get the crowd pumped up. It makes a difference being it picks up the energy in the gym and it makes your blood rush and you get game-ready.

I got a lot of great feedback on the new cheer team and if you are interested come to tryouts at the beginning of March, they are looking for girls and guys to show some school spirit. So GO SPARTANS!!!

Follow the cheer page at @pinole_valley_varsitycheer.