If all of your teammates turned against you, what would you do? After all of her teammates bailed on her, one cheerleader from a Nebraska high school made the decision to keep competing. The youngster makes good on her promise to compete in the state cheer competition instead of quitting and returning home. The courageous cheerleader was a senior in high school and wanted to participate on the state stage among the other Nebraska high school cheer teams who had come from far and wide to perform for the judges.

Three cheerleaders from Morrill High School, all freshmen, left the team before the state competition for the Nebraska State Cheer and Dance Championships for private reasons. There was never a sizable team, and Katrina Kohel, a senior in high school, was the only one remaining to perform. Even though she only had a week and a half before the state final, she was determined to participate alone to represent her high school and contend for the title.

Kohel and her cheerleading instructor, April Ott, sought to figure out what to do when the bulk of the team resigned. Their desire to compete in the state championship was something they didn’t want to give up. They had to choose whether to make the five-hour trip to Grand Island, Nebraska, for a three-day cheering competition among the state’s high schools.

Kohel resisted the urge to give up. The high school senior approached coach Ott after speaking to her mother and informed the mentor that she wanted to compete even if she would be the only one on stage. Over the course of the whole season, Kohel put a lot of effort into perfecting the cheer routine. Even though it would require her to perform alone in front of the whole state of Nebraska, she didn’t want to quit.

As soon as I realized I would be the only one, Kohel added, “I kind of knew that I still wanted to go out and cheer even if I was going to be myself.” “It wasn’t a difficult choice,”

All four years of high school, Kohel cheered for her school. Since her parents took her to a high school sports event when she was a little child, she had imagined herself as a cheerleader.

“Cheer has taken a lot of my time. I didn’t want to end on that note since it’s simply always been a part of who I am. Kohel remarked, “I wanted to go on a high note.” I didn’t want to finish it by going to watch State because I wanted that to happen. I desired a challenge.

Kohel and Ott rewrote the performance’s original choreography, which called for four cheerleaders.

Ott remarked, “She was completely confident the entire week we practiced.” She just owned it, and she was utterly confident.

The opening solo performer in the state championship was Kohel.
Ott gushed that she was “super proud of Kohel) for wanting to finish what she started.”