GOOD HOPE, Ala. — Good Hope sophomore Mckenzie McDonald will be heading into her second year on the varsity cheerleading squad, and she has really enjoyed that experience so far. She has learned so much from her fellow cheerleaders.
“It’s been amazing. I love my cheer family. I’ve experienced so many new things that have helped me get to where I am today. It’s led me to be able to get to know new people, and most importantly, it made me realize what I’m capable of,” McDonald said. “Alongside from the girls, I will say the experience is a challenge, but it is a great challenge. It pushes you to do things you never thought you could do. It has pushed me to try new and harder things, become a better person, and especially a better leader for my school and my community. One thing that I have learned from the girls is to always keep going. Strive for success, no matter the circumstances or outcome. I have learned to always speak positive and have a great attitude, even when things get difficult. Us as a team always lift each other up and cheer each other on.”
McKenzie has soaked up as much as she can from head coach Brandy Lowe, and she’s seen big-time improvement in her performance so far.
“Coach Lowe is like a second mom to me. I know she is there when I need her. I don’t know how all of this would be possible without her. She is awesome at what she does; she’s also caring, uplifting, brave, funny and smart. One thing I have learned from her and that has stuck with me is never let failure keep you from achieving your goal. Whenever you make a mistake or fail, fix it and always try again. Keep trying. Never let failure stop you, and always keep pushing for success,” McDonald said. “I’ve seen so much improvement in my performance so far. I have gotten so much better at performing, especially during competitions.”
She worked on a lot of things in the summer to get ready for this upcoming season. She learned a lot from last year’s seniors, and she talked about the goals for this upcoming season.
“I worked on my strength to become a better back spot for my stunt group, and I worked on my tumbling, my cheer motions, and jumps,” she said. “They helped me so much, especially to become a better leader, become more mature, and they showed me what it meant to be strong. I want to give a special thanks to former cheerleader, Ashlin Hamm, for always being like a big sister to me. She showed me how to always shoot for the best, no matter the circumstances, and I’m so thankful that she was there to teach me that.”
She added,
“My individual goals are to become a better cheerleader overall, push myself to exercise as much as possible, get more and harder tumbling passes, and get closer to Jesus. Our team goals are to win state, hit zero deductions all season long, get in the top three at all of the competitions, and push ourselves to do what we as a team want to achieve.”
Mckenzie thinks this cheer season will be a very special one for the Lady Raider cheer team. She talked about her role models, the best advice that someone ever gave her, and what she has learned from this year’s seniors so far.
“The main thing that will make our cheer squad special to watch is our routines and how we as a team performs them. You see that everyone has a great routine; it just depends on how you perform it on the mat,” she said. “I love watching TGLC, and I would love to be able to perform like them one day. The best advice someone ever gave me was to just be smart. It seems simple, but there is so much meaning behind it. This year’s seniors have been uplifting and I’ve learned how to stand up and be an amazing leader.”
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