OHS Cheerleaders spent some of their winter break with a trip to Florida, warm weather, and a college football game. 

Five cheerleaders traveled to Orlando, Florida to perform a pre-game routine at the 2020 Citrus Bowl, a college football game held annually on New Year’s. The game was played by the Michigan Wolverines and the Alabama Crimson Tide, with Alabama winning 35-16.

OHS cheerleaders were offered this opportunity because of the excellent showing they had at UCA (Universal Cheerleaders Association) camp in Cape Girardeau. All of the cheer girls were offered the opportunity to go, but only five attended — Kaitlyn Clark (11), Melina Rivera (11), Jordan Hahn (10), Mallory Guentz (9), and Jenna Mueller (9).

The girls arrived in Florida on Dec. 29 and stayed until Jan. 2. They practiced throughout the week and performed at the Citrus Bowl with other schools from around the United States in the pregame show. The crowd consisted of 66,000 fans that were watching the performance.

“I have been performing since I was little, but performing in front of 66,000 people was a different experience,” said Guentz. ¨It was very nerve racking knowing everyone was watching,” 

It was not all work for the girls, though. After practices they were able to attend Disney World and spend some time at the different parks.

“Disney was the best,” Guentz said. “It was way different from when I was little and it meant more to be spending time with friends and not worrying about the performance and reality back home.” 

The girls are hopeful for more experiences like this in the future. 

“It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to perform and to meet other girls. I really hope that we get more opportunities like this in the future, it was a really great experience,” said Clark.