The IHSA Cheerleading State Finals return to Bloomington Coliseum on Friday and Saturday, February 3-4. A total of 100 schools will perform in Friday's prelims, with twenty-five qualifying in each of the four classes: Small, Medium, Large, and Coed. The Top 10 teams in each class on Friday will return to perform again in Saturday’s finals.
Every performance this weekend will be streamed live on the NFHS Network via www.IHSA.tv with a subscription, while recaps from Saturday’s finals will also be rebroadcast on CSN Chicago on numerous dates beginning February 12 (click for times/channel info).
SMALL
First-Time Qualifiers: 1, North Boone
Sectional Champions: Breese Central (88.44); Reed-Custer (84.76); Somonauk (82.49); Farmington (82.40); New Berlin (78.63)
After back-to-back Top 10 finishes in 2014 (8th) and 2015 (6th), Wilmington’s first trophy in IHSA state cheerleading was the trophy, as the Wildcats were crowned 2016 state champs. Wilmington is back to defend its crown against a host of usual suspects, including Sectional champ Breese Central, who placed third in 2016 after winning state in 2014 and 2015. Dwight, the 2013 state champion, placed fifth a year ago, while Oakwood has three consecutive Top 6 finishes, including fourth in 2015 and 2016, and hopes to bring home its first trophy this weekend. Somonauk has won a pair of trophies (3rd in 2012 and 2014) and its Sectional champion squad will be poised to contend for another in 2017. New Berlin scored its first Top 10 finish since 2012 a year ago and built on that momentum with a Sectional title last week, while fellow Sectional winner Reed-Custer hopes to bring home its first trophy after four consecutive Top 10 finishes. Farmington might be the wildcard in the group, as the Farmers rebounded from missing state last year by winning their Sectional on Saturday, but have just one Top 10 finish (6th in 2006) in school history. Class 1A also features a first-time qualifier in North Boone.
MEDIUM
12-Time Qualifiers: 4, Bloomington; Lemont; Oak Forest; Tinley Park
Sectional Champions: Crystal Lake Central (94.40); Oak Forest (91.27); Waterloo (87.11); Morris (86.97); Wauconda (79.67)
With four state trophies and seven Top 10 finishes in program history, Oak Forest bore the distinction of being the best Medium Division program to never win a state title. That label is no more, as the Bengals captured their first state championship in 2017 and followed with a Sectional title last Saturday. Repeating has been difficult in the Medium Class of late, as St. Viator, Columbia (5th in 2016), Lemont and Hampshire won the previous four titles and will all be pushing Oak Forest again this weekend. The last repeat state champion was Lemont (2009-2011), whose second-place finish a year ago marked the school’s tenth state final trophy in 12 years. Sectional champion Crystal Lake Central has been a program on the rise, as the Tigers placed third a year ago after finishing fifth in both 2014 and 2015. With ten Top 10 finishes in program history, including five in the Top 5, Wauconda is one of the state’s most consistent programs, which was on display Saturday when the Bulldogs scored a Sectional title. Waterloo and Morris rounded out the Medium Class Sectional champions in 2017. Morris is just two years removed from a runner-up finish, while Waterloo hopes to record its first Top 10 finish in school history this weekend.
LARGE
First-Time Qualifiers: 1, Harlem
12-Time Qualifiers: 3, Lake Zurich; Lockport; Sandburg
Sectional Champions: Jacobs (93.03); Lincoln-Way East (92.09); Joliet West (90.97); Rolling Meadows (85.83); Glenbard North (84.53)
The girls in gold edged the girls in green a year ago in the IHSA’s Large Class, as Joliet West claimed its first state championship by topping perennial power Providence. Joliet West won a Sectional crown last week, while 2013 state champion Providence seeks its fourth consecutive state final trophy. Joliet West’s state title ended Lincoln-Way East’s bid for a championship threepeat, but the 2017 Sectional champion Griffins will be back looking to make their sixth Top 10 finish in seven years. After placing third in 2016, Neuqua Valley has the chance to bring home its fourth consecutive trophy in 2017, while fellow qualifier and three-time state champ Sandburg just missed its sixth overall state trophy when it placed fourth a year ago. Two-time state champ Lockport is always a Top 10 contender, especially after advancing from the difficult Andrew Sectional, which featured four past state champs among its five advancing schools. As tradition-rich as the Large Class has generally been, the remaining three Sectional champs in 2017 showcase programs that are on the rise at the state level. Glenbard North, Jacobs, and Rolling Meadows (9th in 2015) all captured Sectional titles last week, but have just one Top 10 state final finish among them in tourney history. Jacobs’ Sectional triumph included topping a pair of programs who placed in the Top 10 a year ago in Huntley (6th) and Lake Zurich (7th), who will both be back competing at Bloomington Coliseum this weekend.
COED
12-Time Qualifiers: 4, Conant; Elk Grove Village; Lake Park, Triad
Sectional Champions: Belvidere North (93.69); Conant (90.04); Normal UHIGH (89.98); Stagg (88.36); Triad (85.06)
Buffalo Grove captured its second consecutive Coed Class state championship a year ago, as well as its third in four years. If the Bison hope to threepeat, they will have to overcome a pair of teams who topped them in Saturday’s Sectional action first. That includes Sectional champ Belvidere North, who won its first state trophy when it placed second a year ago, as well as Grant, who was third in 2013. Sectional champ Conant is another top contender and one of the state’s most decorated programs, with state titles in both the Large (2010) and Coed Classes (2014) to go with five total trophies. Elk Grove Village and Lake Park join Conant as programs who have qualified for all 12 IHSA Cheer State Finals and also have state championship pedigrees. York just missed a trophy last season, as the Dukes recorded the program’s first-ever Top 10 finish with their fourth-place finish. Normal UHIGH and Stagg claimed the two remaining Sectional titles in the Coed Class. Stagg hopes to return to the Top 10 in 2017 after winning third in 2015, while UHIGH has posted four consecutive Top 10 finishes entering the weekend. Triad was a Medium Class power, winning state in 2006, who transitioned to Coed this season and started off with a bang, winning a Sectional title last Saturday.
|
TOURNAMENT HISTORY
12th annual State Series
11th year at U.S. Cellular Coliseum
SITE
Bloomington Coliseum
Directions
HOST
Bloomington-Normal CVB
BN Sports Commission
SCHEDULE
Team-by-Team Schedules:
Prelims - Finals
Friday, February 3
Session 1
9:15 AM - Prelims of Small & Medium Classes
1:45 PM - Small/Medium finalists announced
Session 2
3:30 PM - Prelims of Large & Coed Classes
8:00 PM - Large/Coed finalists announced
Saturday, February 4
Session 3
11:00 AM - Finals of Small & Medium Classes
12:50 PM - Small Awards
1:15 PM - Medium Awards
3:00 PM - Finals of Large & Coed Classes
4:55 PM - Large Awards
5:20 PM - Coed Awards
TICKETS
$10 per day
WATCH
All performances available LIVE on www.IHSA.tv
CSN Chicago Finals Recap Rebroadcast Schedule
RESULTS
Friday Prelim Results
Saturday Final Results
OFFICIAL STATE FINAL
Gear from Minerva
Photos from VIP
Souvenir Program
SOCIAL MEDIA #IHSA
Twitter - @IHSAstate
Instagram - @IHSA_IL
Facebook.com/IHSA.IL
Classic IHSA YouTube Video
STATE SUPPORTERS
Country Financial
Wilson Sporting Goods
Gatorade
MaxPreps
HISTORY & RECORDS
2017 Sectional Results
Record Book & Past Champions
|