With their coach, Catherine Evans, looking on, four Wheatland High School cheerleaders sign letters on Friday to attend Chadron State College on scholarships. L-R RyeAnn Geschwell, Elly Smith, Halle Smith and Abby Ferguson.
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Steve Knight
STEVE KNIGHT
sknight@pcrecordtimes.com
WHEATLAND – Four Wheatland High School cheerleaders will continue their educational journey after signing for cheerleading scholarships with Chadron State College on Friday.
Halle Smith, Elly Smith, Abby Ferguson and RyeAnn Geschwell signed with the four-year public college located in Chadron, Nebraska, which was founded in 1911 and has an enrollment of about 2,500 students.
Geschwell said cheerleading is a lot of hard work but the effort has been worthwhile.
“The team is the most important part,” Geschwell said. “I love what we do and what we’re able to accomplish. They’ve helped me come a long way. I started not so super great and now I’m signing to a college for cheerleading. I been a long road, but it’s been fun.”
For Abby Ferguson, it’s her first year to cheer.
“Cheering is really fun,” Ferguson said. “It didn’t mean a lot to me in the beginning but as it went along, I realized that it was the best thing that happened to me. I’m really excited about college. Chadron is amazing.”
Twin sisters Halle and Elly Smith are also looking forward to college.
“It’s a way to make friends, family,” Elly Smith said. “I’ve gotten really close to the team here at the high school and now ready to make more friends, more family. I’m excited to become a teacher and move towards that goal.”
Hallie Smith said cheering is “a way to get away from the pressures of high school.”
“It’s a lot of fun, she said. “College is going to be something new. It’s out of Wyoming, it’s in Nebraska so it’s going to be something really different.”
They are the first members from the high school’s spirit program accepted by Chadron State’s cheer program, according to Catherine Evans, who is in her third year as head cheer coach.
“I’m super proud of them,” Evans said. “Just watching the four of them transform - they we’re babies when we first started this and now they’re grown up and they’re going to do grown up things. I’m super proud that I was able to take over the program and get them the opportunity to go cheer with scholarships. It’s just amazing.”
Elly Smith and Ferguson plan to major in elementary education while Halle Smith and Geschwell will study business.
