Last Friday night was senior night for the cheerleaders, an anticipated event for the team and coaches.

Gabby Velotta, the varsity cheerleading coach, thinks senior night is a great tradition to recognize the athletes. “I think it’s awesome that we celebrate the students for their ‘final hurrah’ in their sport. It’s such a great way to end the season, and having a picture with parents is such a nice way to commemorate your final year of high school, with your parents by your side,” she said.

Senior Bella Gamerman, a three-year member of the cheerleading team, admits that she has been thinking about senior night since she first began cheering. She said, “I love the fact that the seniors on both the cheer squad and the football team could have their time to truly stand out and reflect on how far we all have come.”

Veteran cheerleader Adriana Valletta, who has cheered since first grade through Mayfield youth cheerleading, was thrilled when there was a surprise for her on senior night. “My parents ended up surprising me by inviting my family without me knowing,” she said.

Velotta adds that a highlight of the night was cheering with the Purrfect Paws cheerleaders. She said, “It summed up our season really well considering these girls spent much of their season giving back – by way of volunteering for WYFC practices, raising money for St. Jude and cheering with our special needs squad, Purrfect Paws.”

Valletta’s favorite part of senior night was entering the football field with her parents. “You may ask why this is special to me. After I saw the pictures taken from Mr. [Dan] Greve, I really got to see how happy and proud my parents were,” she said.

Although the cheerleaders did their regular routine of eating pasta and getting ready together before the game, there was a new addition that made senior night special, according to Gamerman. She said, “This time, we pinned our senior sashes on, and our juniors gave all the seniors necklaces with their names on them.”

Velotta loves how the varsity squad continued old traditions by toilet-papering the houses of the senior football players before the last game. She said, “Also, the juniors on the cheer squad celebrated their seniors by buying them really beautiful personalized necklaces. The gesture was so sweet and I really think it was the perfect way to wrap up a great season for all the girls,” she said.

Although ‘The Funk’ is done at every football game, the senior cheerleaders embraced being able to perform it one last time. Velotta said, “I know they love that dance and it truly is a Mayfield tradition, so it’s always great seeing it performed with so much love and excitement.”