Competitive cheerleaders bring energy, enthusiasm
Things got quite a bit catty on a night at Michelle Krill Field at Historic Pullman Park recently.
The BrassCats, TinKittens, CobaltCats, Titanium Cats, Platinum Cats — 14 different teams in all took their turns performing in front of a raucous crowd.
They weren't pitching, hitting or catching a baseball, however. They were pitching their two-and-a-half minute routines, hitting their moves and catching the attention of those gathering in the stands.
Welcome to Butler, Cheer Athletics.
The Pittsburgh-based All-Star Competitive Cheerleading organization — formed by Butler Area School District graduates, sisters and former Golden Tornado cheerleaders Beth Ditmer and Jennifer Walton three years ago — was showing off its routines in preparation for the competitive season.“We got off to a late start this year because of the (COVID-19) pandemic,” Ditmer said. “We usually start in May, put the routines together for our teams and practice for the competition season, which begins in November.“We put together this night (Oct. 24) to get our teams a feel for what it's like to perform in front of an audience.”Cheer Athletics is a national organization founded in Texas in 1995. All of its teams — branches in Austin, Charlotte, Columbus, Dallas, Denver, Pittsburgh and St. Louis among them — have nicknames relative to cats.Ditmer, a 1995 Butler graduate, and Walton, a 1999 grad, have been coaching all-star cheerleading for a number of years.“Cheer Athletics has been the most successful organization in the country,” Ditmer said. “We wanted to bring that to our local area.”In just three years, the sisters' Cheer Athletics branch has grown to 250 cheerleaders, including seven males. A few of their teams have already captured national championships.Through 2019, Cheer Athletics overall has compiled 26 gold, 29 silver and 16 bronze medals in world competitions, more than any other all-star cheerleading organization in the country.
“Some (competitive cheerleaders) were leaving the area to go link up with Cheer Athletics someplace else,” Walton said. “Now they don't have to do that. They can stay right here.”The Pittsburgh branch's gym is in West Deer Township and has athletes coming in from as far away as Erie, Ohio and West Virginia, along with Butler, Mars and schools from across the Pittsburgh region.“We're a big family,” Haley Screngari of Butler said. “This is my last year, but this has been a great experience.“We practice three times a week and the practices are intense. They (coaches) really push us, but it's all out of love. They are very motivating.”Erin Weiss, 17, of Butler, has also been a soccer player and swimmer. She is in her fourth year of cheerleading.Her Cheer Athletics team placed second at nationals in Florida last year.“A friend of mine was in all-star cheer and asked me to come along to give it a try,” Weiss said. “I loved it.“I love performing in front of people. There's so much energy. It's super fun.”Walton likes the comfort zone she and Ditmer's organization has developed.“We have the biggest gym in the Pittsburgh area,” Walton said. “These people walk in the door and they're instantly excited. It's a place where they can feel comfortable and work together to accomplish big things.“We have room for a lot more. We've got 250 right now. The Cheer Athletics' main gym in Plano (Texas) has 1,000. We expect to keep growing.”The age range of the competitors is from 3 years to people in their 20s.“We do eight to 10 competitions a year — five local in the Pittsburgh area, the rest national events in different cities,” Ditmer said. “The competitive season ends in April; then we start all over again the following month.“It's never-ending and it's never tiring. The energy and enthusiasm are incredible.”
