Her Journey: Madisson Rivera

Madisson Rivera, a junior at Loyola and she is on the Loyola Cheerleading team. She says “it’s been really fun and I’ve met a lot of my friends through this team, but there have definitely been challenges.” The challenges Madisson is referring to is the inconsistency of the coaches. For the past five years, the cheer team has had a new coach every year, and because of this the structure of the team has been affected. The expectations and structure of the team have changed every year which has negatively affected the team. Although the coaching has been inconsistent for this team, the seniors have stepped up every year, leading the team through the season and helping maintain expectations and structure.

Being a part of the team has been a mostly positive experience for Madisson, but because of the

inconsistency with the coaches, it has affected her experience. She feels as though the team lacks security and consistency because they haven’t had the same coach for the past five years. A coach for a team is key, and not being able to have a consistent coach does affect the team. Every year they are being forced to learn and adapt to new techniques from new coaches. Although they are a solid team with a solid group of seniors, they still need a consistent coach to continue to better the team.

Next year Madisson will be entering her senior cheer season and is hoping to become captain. She wants to help the girls succeed and lead them through hardships. She hopes to help lead the team and guide the younger girls to have a good experience like she did. She wants to create a positive environment for the team alongside her best friend, Avery Beckelman who is also going into her senior year.