After winning its first Class L state title in program history in 2020, the Daniel Hand cheerleading team saw its 2021 campaign get canceled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite that disappointment, the Tigers were still able get together for practices during a season that saw two of their cheerleaders earn a couple of major accolades.

Head Coach Licia Ciotti and her athletes managed to hold a practice season in the midst off all the chaos this year. Hand’s cheerleaders also trained on their own in hopes of making All-SCC and All-State, and two of its athletes wound up getting selected to both of those teams.

Junior captain Ali Ciotti and sophomore Reegan O’Dea each garnered All-SCC and All-State honors on behalf of the Hand cheerleading program in 2021. Ciotti and O’Dea received those distinctions after submitting highlight reels of their skills during Hand’s practices.

Ciotti and O’Dea were proud of each other for earning their respective All-SCC and All-State recognition. This marks the second time that each athlete has made the All-State Team. Ciotti and O’Dea worked hard to receive their honors, and they are looking forward to cheering together next season.

“I think that Reegan and I both did a great job this year with continuing our skills in order to make All-State and All-SCC,” said Ciotti. “I am incredibly proud of both of us for working in the offseason so that we could have this amazing opportunity of being a part of the All-State and All-SCC teams.”

Like Ciotti, it meant a lot to O’Dea that she earned All-SCC status to go with her second-straight All-State recognition. Still, it was difficult for O’Dea to be unable to compete alongside her fellow Tigers this year.

“I’ve been cheering for so long, and I’ve always looked forward to cheering for Hand. Realizing I wouldn’t get to compete my sophomore year, after winning a state championship, was super hard to accept,” O’Dea said. “Usually for All-State, we would send in a tape of our stunts, tumbling, cheer, and jumps, and this year we did the same, so it wasn’t all that different. We just couldn’t tape our stunts, which was a letdown, since I love stunting.”

Ciotti has been cheering for the past 13 years and dedicates a ton of free time to the sport that she loves most. Ciotti was just as devastated as O’Dea when she found out that Hand cheerleading wouldn’t have a traditional season in 2021, although she was able to make the most of it.

“After winning a state championship last year, it was hard to accept the fact that we would not have a season. I think for me personally, it was extremely difficult not having a season with the team to improve the program,” Ciotti said. “However, I think it helped me improve my own skills offseason as I was able to gain a lot of strength and work on my tumbling a lot more. Even though the team was not able to improve together, it gave me the chance to become better as a cheerleader.”

Coach Ciotti said that it was especially challenging to make All-SCC and All-State, because stunting was not allowed. Hand’s coach was proud of the efforts of both her daughter Ali and O’Dea for working hard to get those awards. This year, each school in the state was allowed to submit video of tumbling, jumps, cheers, and showmanship for five eligible candidates to a panel of judges.

“These two athletes continued to train on their own in order to keep up their skills in hopes of trying out for an All-SCC and All-State honor,” Coach Ciotti said. “With no competition season and no stunting allowed, tumbling was the main skill necessary to make these accolades.”

With stunting not allowed, Ali Ciotti certainly felt a difference in the audition process for All-SCC and All-State this year.

“It was definitely very different. Usually, it is a video consisting of tumbling, jumps, cheering, and stunting with your team. Because of COVID, it was a video of just tumbling, jumps, and a one-minute cheer,” said Ciotti. “Since we did not have a team, season, or a normal day-to-day life, we were not able to incorporate stunting into our tapes. The only thing that stayed the same was getting nominated.”

Assistant Coach Michelle O’Dea said that her daughter Reegan’s passion for the sport provides a source of motivation for Hand’s cheerleaders. While Reegan loves cheering at other sporting events, Coach O’Dea said that nothing tops participating in competitions for the rising junior.

“Reegan is a one of the strongest tumblers, a powerful back-spot, and tremendous jumper. She has won multiple jump contests in her youth career and was captain of her youth team,” said Coach O’Dea. “Reegan has settled into the position as a back-spot, proving she is most powerful and essential in that position when stunting. Reegan likes having the ability to control the stunt and watching the stunt to perfect execution.”

After all of the uncertainties that accompanied the recent school year, the athletes on the Hand cheerleading squad are eager to get back to doing stunts and competing as a team when school resumes again.

“I am extremely excited for what we have to bring this year,” Ali Ciotti said. “We have a lot of talent, which gives us a better opportunity of succeeding. So far, we have been starting with summer practices and summer workouts to improve as a team.”