North’s varsity cheerleaders ended an impressive competition season, finishing ninth in the state at the IHSA State Finals on Feb. 3.

Grayslake North cheerleaders packed early Thursday morning and headed down to the Grossinger Motors Arena in Bloomington, Illinois. They had previously secured their spot at State on Jan. 28 after taking second at sectionals. The varsity squad, consisting of freshman, juniors and seniors, had been working hard for this weekend their whole season.

“We fixed really small details in our routine to make it absolutely perfect. We also drilled our skills so they could hit with so much confidence,” said senior Hillary Lewandowski.

Leading up to the State Finals, varsity had competed at several competitions. On Jan. 15, they took home second in the Northern Lake County Conference (NLCC) Championship. Just days earlier, they held their twelfth annual cheer invite, where they took third among a talented medium varsity division.

“This group is extremely talented so not only were they pushing the limits with the difficulty in skills but were really focusing on being clean and detail orientated to take us to the next level,” said head coach Jennifer Garza.

Garza continued advocating for the girls throughout the season to push their limit in difficulty. She says she was tough on the team during practices and wanted them to pay attention to the smallest of details, but knew that when they were out on floor, everything was up to them.

“I love that this team is able to take everything thrown at them and still go out and do what they are able to do,” said Garza.

In the medium varsity division, North competed against a total of 22 teams. They placed six out of the 22, making it in the top ten and advancing on to the second day of State Finals. They finished the weekend as ninth in the state, a hard-earned title they had worked hard for their whole season.