Kelly Kannel is the Nevada High School basketball cheer coach. Coach Kannel is looking forward to teaching with consistency by staying with the cheer squad for the next few years and building relationships with the girls. Coach Kannel has a daughter on the cheer squad along with five seniors, two sophomores, and two freshman.
Coach is hoping that the seniors can help coach the younger athletes the cheers and form. The athletes are learning cheers and stunting, and they are hoping they could stunt on December 5th for their first home mega-night basketball doubleheader.
The cheerleaders like stunting and getting the crowd involved in the game. Their biggest goal is more crowd participation.
Coach Kannel has fundraisers planned, like selling pom poms and old uniforms at the games. The team clothing store opens in mid December, and the cheerleading youth clinic will be held some time in January.
Coach Kannel is a mother to three children: Grant graduated last year, Peighton is in 10th grade, and Logan is in 8th grade. Coach Kannel also works for the district as a substitute teacher.
Jessica Sparks is the wrestling cheer coach at Nevada High School. She was also the cheer coach during the football season this fall.
When Coach Sparks was in high school, she tried all kinds of sports like soccer, softball, and dance. She played for an AAU basketball team, joined a swim team, and cheered during middle school and high school. She also managed the wrestling team for three years.
Coach Sparks hopes to build up the cheerleaders’ skills and to try to put together a state competition squad this year. They have a lot of cheers she is learning, and she is going to teach her cheer girls the “old way” of cheer, which is what she used when she was in high school.
Coach Sparks also works at Nevada Middle School as an 8th grade teachers’ associate.
Article contributed by Mason Adams.
