Flips. Sprints. Lifts. The competitive cheer squad fights to control the emotions and nerves of their upcoming performances.

Competing for the first time, 11 cheerleaders prepare for the NCA High School Nationals in Dallas, Texas on Saturday.

“Basically, our girls have never shown their routine in front of non-cheerleaders or been on the mat with such a small number,” cheer sponsor Jessica Watson said. “They’re not used to having that, you know, everybody shows.”

Because the budget for cheer events is low and competitions are expensive, Legacy cheerleaders have never competed. Watson insist his year is a trial year for the school to see if the competitions will continue in the future.

“If they execute this routine, I could see us being a top three easy which is unheard of for first time competitors,” Watson said.

All girls who met a basic skill standard and were willing to spend hours after school, during holidays and throughout weekends received the chance to compete in the small varsity division at the Dallas Convention Center.

“They have a really good opportunity to win,” Watson said. “They’re amazing, their skill set is really high. This is an unusually high skill set for the division that we’re in.”