SALT LAKE CITY, UT (Good Things Utah) – With hard work and dedication, you can make anything happen, and the Pleasant Grove High School Cheer Team proved this. The team just recently won the national championship last weekend, and joined us to talk about the competition.

The competition took place in Anaheim, and teams from all around the world came to show off their skills. There are different divisions you can compete in, and the Pleasant Grove Cheer Team is in the all-girl advanced medium show cheer division.

During the competition, you only have one day to perform, and if you make it through you go to finals the second day. The Pleasant Grove Cheer Team made it through the first day, and they were all very nervous for the second day, and felt the pressure to pull off a perfect performance, but they had faith in their abilities.

To prepare for their performance, the cheer team practiced six times a week every week leading up to competition. They also do a lot of team bonding and stuck together when times got hard, which is what set them apart from the other competitors, said McKinely Atkinson, a senior and co-captain on the team.

Overall, there were 20 Utah teams at the USA competition in Anaheim. This season, only two teams in Utah won a national championship, with Pleasant Grove being the only national champions from the USA competition.

Before the competition, this cheer team gained some attention on TikTok and created a cheer community by doing so. Social media has brought them together and helped them bond, putting a fun spin on such a competitive sport.

For winning the national championship, the team received a large trophy, and each girl received a medal and got to design a championship ring. You can see more of the Pleasant Grove High School Cheer Team on Instagram at @pghscheerleaders or on TikTok at @pleasantgrovecheer to watch their routines and be a part of their community.