Cheerleading performances have a long tradition of thrilling and entertaining audiences with tumbling skills, complex stunts and engaging choreography. This year, Eastern High School’s competitive cheer team has taken the sport to its next level. Currently celebrating a successful season full of accomplishments, the team members know all the hard work and long hours of practicing their routine full of complex stunts was well worth it.
The all-girl, small varsity Division I squad not only won state at the annual Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) state cheer competition, but also placed sixth in the 2025 Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA) national high school cheerleading championships.
Coach Merideth Foreman is understandably proud. She is in her second year on staff at Eastern High School. She was serving as assistant coach when the head coach stepped down in the middle of the season. She was a cheerleader in middle and high school and began her cheer coaching career while still in college, beginning with middle school students. Foreman understands that to be a winning competitive team, the sport requires endurance, strength, skill and some serious stunts.
“In Kentucky the sport of cheerleading is very competitive,” she says. “Within the cheer community, there are tons of teams that are recognized at the national level. Every girl on the team brings something different. The team came together from multiple middle schools and some girls have been members during all their high school years. We benefited from girls with experience. Some are natural leaders and I could rely on them to help and lead the whole team.”
The Eagles’ winning journey began in October at Shelby County High School where they placed first at the KHSAA Region Four competition. This qualified them to compete at the Kentucky State Competitive Cheer Championships, which were held at George Rogers High School in December. After the thrill of becoming state champions, they qualified for the UCA national championships held at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida, in February. After breezing through semifinals, they earned a sixth-place win against 112 of the best Division I teams in the country.
“This season, our magic moment was when we won regional to go to state,” Foreman says. “That motivated the girls to put in the hard work that it takes to win state and achieve an undefeated season they can be proud of. Once they get a routine down, the girls like to get it perfect.”
The team’s winning routine is two and a half minutes, and packed with stunts, tumbling and cheer chants. The accompanying music is comprised of 20 second snippets of various songs. When “Whoomp (There It Is)” by the hip-hop duo Tag Team was played, the girls chanted “Swoop, there it is,” in reference to their signature cheer chant, “Swoop up with the Eagles.”
“Tyra Anderson, who used to coach at Eastern, created the choreography for the routine,” Foreman says. “It helps that some of the girls know her, and she made a fun routine. She highlighted the things we like to do. The girls continued to work on the routine and this year we were able to perfect the stunts. One was a freestanding pirouette. The flyer is lifted into the air, hand in hand with the base, and then thrown upright, allowing her to perform a standing spin with supported feet.”
Teamwork extends outside of school through community outreach. Giving back helps the girls bond. Each year the Little Eagles Clinic is held and participants from around the Louisville area, not just Middletown, attend. A short routine is taught and performed at an Eagles game. Marching in the Family Fun Festival parade and taking part in charity walks to benefit cancer research are other activities the team enjoys.
Although there are still basketball games to cheer at, preparations for next season are starting. Tryouts for the 2025-2026 season will be held in April. Open gym dates are April 14, 16 and 17. Tryout clinics are April 21 and 22. Tryouts will be April 23. Eastern High School is the location for each day, and the times are 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. except for tryouts, which will last until 8 p.m.
“Some girls have been on the squad all their four years and won state in 2021 as freshmen,” Foreman says. “So, they started and ended their high school cheering careers as state champions. I’m so proud of all the girls. They set a goal and achieved it.”
