HIGH LIFE : THREE CHEERS FOR MATER DEI : Its Pep Squads Are Once Again the Monarchs of National Competition

The Mater Dei High School cheerleaders say they are national champions because they don’t try to be. Instead of working to be No. 1, they simply set a goal of performing to the utmost of their abilities.

“Winning is secondary to doing our best,” said varsity cheerleader Noelani Prietto, a 17-year-old junior.

The school’s varsity cheerleading squad recently beat out 350 teams to place first at the nation’s largest tournament, the National Cheerleading Assn. Championships in Orlando, Fla. The junior varsity squad also finished on top, marking the first time in the competition’s nine years that the same school has won on both levels in the same year.

Mater Dei is one of two high schools to reach the varsity finals all nine years. The Monarchs finished first last year and in the top three in each of the past six years. The junior varsity team has finished first in two of the three years it has competed and third in the other.

“After we came off the floor (in Orlando), we didn’t know whether we had won and we didn’t care,” said varsity cheerleader Cindy Herrera, a 16-year-old junior. “We felt good because we knew we had done our best.”

Mater Dei’s song leaders, who placed second in this year’s National High School Dance Championships, also in Orlando, had been national champions the past two years.

What makes the Mater Dei pep squads among the best in the nation year after year? Members attribute their success to any of a number of things.

“Much of the pep squads’ success has to do with the support they receive from the school,” said cheerleader Tamara Harris, a 17-year-old senior. “The Mater Dei spirit boosts the squad’s morale.”

Added song leader Lisa Ort, a 17-year-old junior: “A lot of the people come to our competitions just to support us, and I don’t think many other schools do.

“Because Mater Dei is a Catholic school, the spiritual environment emphasizes a caring family atmosphere,” she said.

“The squad attends Mass together before every competition and prays before performing.”

Lisa O’Lea, a 17-year-old senior varsity cheerleader, expanded on the idea of team as family: “We’re special because we’re like a family, and we’re so close. Everyone adds something different. The squad’s positive attitude contributes to its competitive spirit. By striving to do their best, they have an edge over their competitors.”

The squad members also credit their coaches with making a difference.

“Our coaches really want us to win and do our best,” said song leader Jen Howard, a 16-year-old junior.

Song leader Kerry Own, a 17-year-old senior, said, “ ‘I’m good. You’re good. Let’s show them’ is an often-heard expression before competition.”

The varsity cheerleaders are coached by Mater Dei teacher Dave Marquez and Laura Detterich, both former Mater Dei cheerleaders. The junior varsity team is coached by teacher Jody Sweet, also a former Monarch cheerleader, and the song leaders are coached by Lisa Byrne, a former Mater Dei song leader.

Said Amy Conrad, an 18-year-old senior song leader: “They (the coaches) motivate us and tell us when we look bad.”

To be a member of the 60-person Mater Dei pep squad, one must be outgoing, have leadership skills, the physical ability and decent grades. Members must maintain a grade-point average of 2.0.

“They (coaches and administrators) sometimes get on us” if their grade-point averages are low, said varsity cheerleader Matthew Retoski, a 15-year-old sophomore.

Mater Dei’s 10 boy and 12 girl cheerleaders at the Orlando competition had the highest team GPA (3.5) among all competing schools. Head cheerleader Kevin Kelly, a 17-year-old senior enrolled in honors classes, has a 4.6 GPA.

Mater Dei’s 1987-88 varsity competition cheerleading team has only three returning members.

“This has been my most rewarding year with the squad because we’ve had so much inexperience, yet we came away with the national title,” said John Marino, assistant principal in charge of extracurricular activities. “With that group, we had to put in (an) extra amount of time and effort to improve, especially with the boys because they are all new. I am very proud of their achievements.”

Song leader Gabriella Lengua, a 17-year-old senior, said: “We have an extra-positive attitude. Being winners takes sole dedication and discipline.”

Mater Dei’s pep squads practice an hour during the school day and three hours after school.

The song leaders’ practice includes aerobics twice a week, and they put in at least three hours on the weekends.

During the summer, the cheerleaders practice three hours a day, six days a week.

“Other schools want to be No. 1, but they don’t practice for it. think it’s attitude,” said head song leader Beth Howard, an 18-year-old senior.

Said Coach Sweet: “Our discipline is different from any other school. We have high standards because we draw on talent from all over. We can get those with the best gymnastic ability. Also, we can have mandatory practices over vacations and holidays.”

The cheerleaders are also required to attend gymnastic classes every Tuesday night at the Irvine School of Gymnastics.

“This is a sport. These are athletes,” Marquez said.

Guidelines are placed on the pep squad by its coaches, administrators and members.

“They are asked not to put themselves in any situation where they can get hurt, such as skiing, because it’s not fair to the other members,” Marino said.

Said Harris: “We’re not supposed to participate in any other sports in or out of school because we have a responsibility to the team.”

During practices, performances and competitions, the girls cannot wear jewelry, must keep their hair in a ponytail and they have to wear clean uniforms. They also must make posters for the athletic teams and sell “spirit” ribbons.

“You can’t be in it just for yourself,” Ort said. “You have to be in it for the whole team.”

If a practice, game or any cheerleading function is missed, the person is taken off the competition squad. If, however, the person is sick or injured, he or she is merely replaced by an alternate.

“If you break a rule everyone on the squad’s mad at you,” Conrad said. “You’ve wasted everyone’s time if you mess up.”

Competitions have been a time of frustration for other schools, for the most part, when Mater Dei’s pep squads have participated.

The Monarch cheerleaders recently took first place in California’s largest competition, Miss Drill Team U.S.A., at Santa Monica, where they have finished atop the standings for the past three years.

The song leaders finished third at Miss Drill Team U.S.A., down from second last year and first in 1985-86.

“All of our hard work and drive to succeed is what makes us special,” said song leader Felicia Hill, a 17-year-old junior. “We’re proud of winning, but it’s the effort we put into it that to us.”