It is a Bobcat party (West Broward’s cheerleading team captures 7th state championship)

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THE BEST PARTY: The West Broward Cheerleading team poses after bringing home their 7th State Championship win in the 2A extra large non-tumbling category with a score of 90.20.

By: Victoria Carmona, Andreas Lattas

For the seventh time the West Broward High School cheerleading team has captured the 2026 Florida State Championship and the National Championship this same school year. With this victory from states on Jan. 22 , and the National win on Feb. 9. Through this school year, their persistence has driven them to achieve such greatness.

Winning the 2A Extra Large Non-Tumbling category with a score of 90.20. This has been an incredible feat and a program achievement. The team has been working diligently to ensure that they were ready for the National competition. With their confidence coming from the State championship they are the first team to win both the State and National titles in the same year and are the only cheer team from a public school in Broward County to bring home the National Title.

“I am just so happy that this group of kids was able to do it because they really deserved it. They worked so hard this whole year.  They have done anything that we have asked of them, and they just put so much trust in us as coaches, and I think it gave us all a lot more confidence. I think that you really can do anything that you put your mind to. So we are really proud of them,” said Danielle Culbertson, physical education teacher and Cheerleading Coach at West Broward High School.

While preparing for States, they have been doing routines, cardio in the summer, and daily practices. These elements combined have been crucial to their success in the competition realm. As they entered the National Championship on Feb. 7, Feb. 8, and Feb. 9th they decided to keep the same strategies and use what has worked for them in the past.

“We practiced almost every single day for the whole entire season. It really started in the summer.  They were going all year long. They had summer workouts. It was endless hours, a lot of Saturdays, eight hour Saturdays.  It was a lot of behind the scenes,” said Culbertson.

The Lady Bobcats went into this season with absolute determination to make West Broward history by winning both competitions the same year. They worked all year long to achieve this outcome. Now with this victory under their belts they can sit back and celebrate their accomplishments as a team.

“There have been ups and downs throughout the years, but overall, it is really fun, and I am glad I got to be a part of it. I love the bonds with the team, traveling, and the adrenaline of competing on the mat. Just hitting the routine, going on the mat, and coming out as the winner was super exciting,” said Nylah Harper, Cheer Captain and senior at West Broward.