All-Star Md. School for the Deaf cheerleaders move toward national competition

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Cheer Parent
Nov 22, 2013
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Md. School for the Deaf cheerleaders move toward national competition​

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MSD Cheerleaders

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The Maryland School for the Deaf’s varsity cheerleaders are raising funds to pay for a trip to a national competition, which is scheduled for the end of April. Shown, from left, are assistant coach Harmony Brunson, Mirna Raimundo, Zoe Austin, DeMonate Joseph, Alina Williamson, Raeann Bumanglag, coach Dani Hernandez and Jade Macedo.


MSD Cheerleaders

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Coach Dani Hernandez uses sign language to lead Maryland School for the Deaf’s varsity cheerleaders during a recent practice.


MSD Cheerleaders

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Maryland School for the Deaf’s varsity cheerleaders, from left, Alina Williamson, Jade Macedo and Zoe Austin are shown at a recent practice.


MSD Cheerleaders
Maryland School for the Deaf varsity cheerleaders practice a routine during a recent practice.


The Maryland School for the Deaf’s varsity cheerleaders kept their expectations low as they made their way to a Virginia Beach competition last month.
The two Deaf competitions they had practiced for all season had been canceled. So their coach, Dani Hernandez, signed them up for a hearing competition instead.
Hernandez didn’t think her team would place highly in a field where teams dance to music rather than the vibrating beat of a bass drum. And that was just fine. She didn’t want them to miss out on the experience of competing — the travel, the lights, the adrenaline.

When they placed first in their division, they were “shocked,” said Maryland School for the Deaf senior Alina Williamson.
“We really won,” Williamson said in American Sign Language on Wednesday, her face lit by a proud smile. “We couldn’t believe it.”
Their performance also secured them a spot at The One Finals, a national cheer and dance contest in Orlando. Now, the team is raising funds to pay for the trip, which is scheduled for the end of April.
They’re practicing as hard as ever, Hernandez said. She stood before them in the school’s gym on Wednesday, signing instructions as they danced and flipped in near-perfect rhythm and near-total silence.
The team can’t be sure, but they think they’re the first Deaf squad to qualify for The One’s national contest. At the competition in Virginia Beach, younger cheerleaders were in awe when the Maryland School for the Deaf team took to the mat, said junior Zoe Austin. They asked for basic American Sign Language lessons when the team was waiting backstage.
“That really touched us,” Austin said.
The kids wondered at the team’s ability to stay on beat without hearing their music.

Each team member keeps an eight-count running on a constant loop in their head as they perform, Austin said. Since they can’t rely on the music or their coach’s shouts to ensure they’re synchronized, they have to split their visual focus several ways: watching their teammates, watching Hernandez’s commands and watching the judges.
“We really have to rely on our eyes and our peripheral vision,” said sophomore Jade Macedo, who competed with a hearing team when she was younger. Deaf cheer teams have to work a little harder to achieve the same results, she said.
Macedo and a few of her teammates are hard of hearing, so they can catch snippets of the music. During practices, they help communicate the rhythm to the others. But when it’s time to compete, everyone relies largely on muscle memory. One person stomps their foot when it’s time to begin, sending a vibration across the mat.
During a basket toss — a cheerleading stunt where a group of athletes throw one person into the air — the team’s hands are occupied, so they can’t sign to one another. Timing and precision are key, but unlike hearing athletes, they can’t rely on counting out loud to make sure everyone is moving at the same time.
Instead, they squeeze each other’s hands at a steady pace to keep track of each critical second. The bases, who are responsible for throwing and catching the airborne cheerleader, will sometimes mouth exaggerated counts at one another.
The team members have become skilled multi-taskers, said Hernandez and assistant coach Harmony Brunson. While executing their stunts, keeping track of their teammates and remembering their choreography, they also try to make eye contact with competition judges and keep their facial expressions lively to ensure an entertaining performance.
“It’s a Deaf thing,” Brunson said, shrugging and smiling.
Regardless of the outcome in Orlando, Austin, Macedo and Williamson said they were proud to represent the Deaf community.
“We’ve come such a long way,” Macedo said. “And I think we’ve earned it.”



Follow Jillian Atelsek on Twitter: @jillian_atelsek
 
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