Interactive Academy Gravity Team brings home National Championship
Interactive Academy in Zionsville has been coaching all-star athletes for 16 years, but this month was its first time competing at the NCA National Championship in Dallas, Texas.
The team competed in D2 Small Senior L5 category at a two-day event and brought home first place.
“This is one of the biggest competitions,” Coach Tiffany Messersmith said. "We’ve competed across the state and some out of state throughout the season but a year ago, this senior team set a goal. They wanted to attend this competition. It’s a well-known, very exciting, prestigious event. It’s an honor to attend it and registration fills up quickly. We went just happy to have the opportunity and exited to be in this environment."
There were more than 30,000 athletes from nine countries and 45 states competing throughout the weekend.
The two-minute and 30-second routine isn’t something you’d see on a football sideline.
The 16 ladies on the senior team are preparing for collegiate level cheer, featuring tumbling, jumps, pyramids and dance. They’re judged on timing, execution and choreography.
“Cheerleading has really evolved over the years. You’ll likely see it in the Olympics soon,” Messersmith said. "It’s a lot of hard work and we’re practicing some elite-level skills we weren’t doing 10 years ago."
Before its first performance and the eventual naming of the winners, the team experienced a scary situation.
The convention center has seven arenas. With coaches in one room and athletes on the opposite side of the convention center, people in the building were led to believe there was an active shooter.
“There was mass chaos. People were running out of the convention center, panic on everyone’s faces,” Messersmith said. "The arena announced an evacuation. It was really a very scary moment for us all."
The team got out of the building safely and, as expected, many were upset and grateful to be reunited with the group.
“We were later told there was no gunfire but it certainly felt very real to all of us. Some of the other teams dropped out,” Messersmith said. “We worked so hard to go to this event and after additional security was brought in, we felt like it was safe. As a team, we decided we were going to stay.”
Instead of performing twice, the Zionsville squad only had the opportunity to perform once due to time constraints. Despite the drama, the fears and the natural nerves of performing at a national competition, Messersmith said it was all worth it.
“They were really thrilled and happy with their performance," she said of her team. "Interactive Academy won first place for innovative choreography. That was exciting and then we got down to the top five and the girls were super excited.”
With a score of 95.6, the team learned of their first place win and the crowd erupted.
“There was screaming and crying and hugging each other,” Messersmith said. "It was such an honor and not something anyone expected. We were against some very strong teams. The next day, the girls woke up still on cloud nine. From the highest of the highs to the lowest of the lows, it’ll certainly be a memory we will never forget.”
First place winners who represented Interactive Academy were Reese Aeschliman, Lucy Brown, Maggie Edwards, Ashelyn Grey, Tenley Herbert, Campbell Hess, Emory Hess, Grace Kazemi, Allie Kogan, Ella Kortepeter, Miley Messersmith, Tori Robinson, Eliza Rom, Ava St. John, Elliotte Tosh and Ellie Wood.
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