I, Isabelle Gray Harris am officially a senior! I can walk these halls and feel like a queen. Yes! Yes! Thank you! Thank you! As they throw me flowers and cheer. I’m not like any other senior! I’m caption of the E.E. Smith Varsity Cheerleading Team. I’m not bragging or anything…. Oh! Wait I am! A lot of people ask me what it is like being a senior. Well…. It’s the best year. You have easy classes and everyone knows that you’re a senior.

Something is going to change this cheerleading season. I’m going to bring everyone closer and make us 2013-2014 National Champions. This means practice non stop! Of course you have to be able to tumble! If you can’t throw a round off back handspring lay out recover into a full and land it perfectly. You have no chance of making my team!

Two weeks past and today is cheerleading try outs. “Okay ladies get ready for one of the toughest most emotional try outs you have ever experienced.” Conditioning is one thing we will work on first. It is important to be in shape. You’re throwing someone 10 to 20 feet above the ground. Flyer’s need to be lifted and locking out! If you fall your cut!

After cutting around 20 girls we have our team! They bring the girls back into the room. Before Isabelle could spill out the word congratulations one last busted threw the door yelling “hey! I would like to try out.” Isabelle was puzzled. She replied with a sharp tone. “Um... I’m sorry! Try outs are over, we already have our team.” The girl replied back with a cocky tone. “I bet I could make your team 20 times better with me on it.” Isabelle was disgusted at her tone. “Oh really…? Give me a round off back handspring into a tuck step out lay out step out full step out tuck!”

The girl glanced at Isabelle with a smirk, as she threw the combination. Everybody shouted and cheered as she landed the tumbling pass. Isabelle told her to do a triple pike into a back tuck. As the girl got ready to go into her back tuck she fell to the ground. Isabelle walked up to her and exclaims “Well I guess you want be a great extra to the team! Humph.”

After months and months of practice and hard work here we are Nationals! We arrive at Magic Kingdom. The sun shinning bright in Florida, as we get ready to take the floor. Are we ready to show the world what we are made of? It’s time to complete my senior year with a win! When suddenly something catches Isabelle’s eye… “What are you doing here?” asked Isabelle. I was Rebecca, the girl that tried out for E.E smith Cheerleading team. “I’m here to beat you! To show you I would have made your team better.”

The pressure is on and the air filled with tension. As each of the team took the floor, E.E Smith was next. One of girls got sick and could not compete. Isabelle stepped up and switched around stunt groups and told the others to tumble. They took the floor and gave the best performance ever! Better then the old routine. Crowning time! Anxiety surfaces for ever team here. There is one thing on everybody’s mind…. Wining! Only one will wear the crown.

The crown waits in silence. The teams wait anxiously on the floor. The air filled with tension and the hearts of many race while the judge procrastinates the winner’s name the sight of teammates grasping each other hands tight. The tears in coach’s eyes as they wait to see if their team’s hard work has paid off.

The wait prolongs until one of last year champs grabbed the microphone and announced that Isabelle was runner up. Isabelle dropped to her knees in disbelief. She was devastated. Her heart soared to the pit of her stomach. What went wrong? Isabelle thought. When everything became silent once more… “Wait just one moment Miss. Isabelle! You have also been awarded a full Cheerleading Scholarship to UNC Chapel Hill!” Isabelle’s face lite up as tear’s streamed down her rose flushed face. Until the lady paused to realize that she had made a mistake. Isabelle didn’t win a Scholarship. The mistake was corrected as the audience fell silent. Isabelle was flabbergasted at what she had heard.

9 month later…. She graduated and went on to a regular four year college. Isabelle’s senior year wasn’t what it cracked up to be. “Le Cordon Bleu” engraved on the welcoming sign. She finally arrived to begin her new life as a culinary student.