BLOOMINGTON – After a nearly spotless routine in the final round, Lemont’s cheerleading team was crowned as the champion at the IHSA Medium Division Cheerleading State Finals at Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington.
Head coach Bree Grady-Simpson’s squad won its first state title since 2018, and the program’s seventh state championship overall. Lemont pushed its state record streak of top five state finals finishes to 19 seasons, and improved upon its own state record by earning its 15th state trophy. Lemont was tops among 25 teams in its division after the first day of competition thanks to its score of 96.78 in the preliminary round.
In the final round, Lemont improved on its preliminary score, posting a score of 97.94 to outdistance runner-up Burlington Central (95.16) and third-place Crystal Lake Central (93.42).
Grady-Simpson’s team includes seniors Fawne Ford and Avaree Taylor; juniors Claire Auw, Jordan Cryer, Mia Federovich, Grace Markun, Ella Mierzwa, Tessa Preuss, Kelsey Schmidt, Molly Wallace and Ashley Wrublik; sophomores Samantha DuVall, Ella Phelan, Morgan Sadelski and Victoria Swanstrom; and freshmen Hailey Borner, Emma Federovich, Allyson Fluder, Natalie Oprondek and Melanie Wallace.
Lemont has won eight IHSA sectional titles (2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024). The most decorated cheerleading program in state history, Lemont is joined by Conant, Lockport, Oak Forest and Sandburg as the only programs to advance to the IHSA State Finals each year since the IHSA State Series began in 2006. Its 15 state trophies are the most in the history of the IHSA State Series for cheerleading. With no worse than a fifth-place finish in any of its state finals appearances, Lemont is the only cheerleading program in the state to have finished among the state’s top ten each year since 2006.
In the Large Division, Lockport (94.99) finished third, while Lincoln-Way East (91.85) was fourth and Lincoln-Way Central (89.60) was sixth.
Morris finished sixth in the Medium Division with a score of 92.06, while Wilmington was fifth in the Small Division with a score of 88.24.
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