THS cheer squad finishes sixth at state

The Tucumcari High School cheerleading squad finished sixth overall in Class 3A at the New Mexico Activities Association’s spirit championships Saturday at The Pit in Albuquerque.

The Rattlers squad scored 69.83 in their first performance and 60.53 in their second for a total of 130.37 points — less than two points behind fifth-place finisher West Las Vegas and its 132 points.

Raton won the Class 3A state title with 165.13 points. Ruidoso was runner-up with 150.1 points, and Cobre finished third with 148.

Members of the THS cheer squad are D’Naylie Rivera, Brandon Quintana, Jacqueline Rodriguez, Nevaeh Montoya, Eva Rivera, Layla Portillo, Catherine Reyes, Lucilla Benavidez, Gabriella Segura, Justin Garcia and Marcella Marroquin.

“They did a fantastic job,” coach Jolene Marroquin said. “We went against some fantastic teams. The girls and Brandon were confident, had the perfect amount of energy and hit everything. I’m proud of both routines.

“We got a ton of compliments from individuals on how loud we were for being such a small team. We got lots of positive feedback and some great advice. I hope next year for a bigger squad so we can do more in our routines to earn a lot more difficulty points.”

The THS squad qualified for state in February with two first-place finishes in Game Day and cheer competitions at Clovis.

In Class A-2A, Melrose finished second behind state-champ Questa. In Class 4A, Taos won the state title, and Eldorado won the Class 5A championship.

In co-ed competition, Lovington won the state title in Class A-4A, and Hobbs captured the first-place trophy in 5A.