Joliet West cheerleaders take their best shot

The Joliet West competitive cheerleading team did not win a state championship last weekend at U.S. Cellular Coliseum in Bloomington. Nor did the Tigers earn a spot on the podium.

However, what they accomplished was historic nonetheless.

West qualified for the finals in the Large Team Division and scored a school-record 93.72 points in finishing fourth. Lincoln-Way East won the division with 97.06, the highest score ever given to anyone in state competition. Neuqua Valley was second with 95.00 and Providence claimed third with 93.94.

“Our kids did their absolute best,” Tigers coach Amy DiForti said. “It’s a little bittersweet that we didn’t get on the podium, but mostly we were excited. There’s nothing we could have done differently. We increased our score by almost three points in the finals from the day before. The teams that beat us were outstanding.”

Lincoln-Way East, of course, is a competitor from the Southwest Suburban Blue. Lockport and Sandburg always are strong.

“Our conference is unbelievable,” said DiForti, who is in her eighth season after coming to West from Marist. “It dominates in the cheerleading world. Competing against those teams in the conference and sectional, our girls realize how talented they are and how hard they have to work to get to that level.

“What Lincoln-Way East just did is set the standard even higher.”

DiForti’s work ethic is manifested in her team.

“My coach is phenomenal,” said West athletic director Steve Millsaps, also the conference resource director for cheerleading. “She works the kids so hard.

“Those two performances back-to-back at state were unbelievable. To get as close as they did to our first trophy since the school split was a great accomplishment.”

The Large Team Division allows one boy on a team. The Tigers have four senior captains who were four-time state qualifiers in Hakeem Allen, Kylah Aubry, Claudia Cali, Alysha Vazquez and Sammie Kowalczyk.

The other seniors on the team are Amber Gore, Yaya Baht-Isreal, Shane Brown and Cara Dunskis. Juniors are Yanni Stevens, Danielle Hofsteadter, Fatimah Ibidunni, Justyce Molette, Janie Wilson, Felicite Woods and Ty’Shalia Woods.

Amina Lee, Carolina Soto, Tyeler Delrose and Jenna Thomas are sophomores, and the freshmen are Rachel MacDowell, Lydia Schrock and Brooklynn Johnson.

“Cheerleading is probably the only sport where you have your competitive season and perform for other sports as well,” DiForti noted. “They work for 10 months out of the year. The things we do take a long time to perfect.”

DiForti said the Tigers’ main routine is the same during the run of the competitive season.

“We tweak it, perfect it, as we go along,” she said. “The pyramid is the highlight for our team. We did that very well at state.”

Since the IHSA began competitive cheerleading competition in the 2005-2006 school year, the Joliet area has been well represented.

Lockport has won the Large Team Division twice and finished second three times. Lemont won its fourth Medium Team championship last weekend and has finished second three times.

Providence won the Large Team title last year, and Peotone and Dwight have claimed Small Team crowns.

West’s previous best finish was seventh in 2012. The Tigers are climbing the ladder, looking forward to the day earn a trophy.

“Hopefully that day is coming,” DiForti said. “But we are losing nine really good seniors. They have done a great job for four years. Five of them, our five captains, have been on varsity all four years.”