Ozark Cheer is making history, again! For the first time since the late '90s, Ozark Varsity Cheer officially competed as a coed team in the 2024 season, marking a major milestone for the program. And in true Ozark fashion, they didn’t just compete, they conquered, bringing home the State Champion title for their Game Day routine on Feb. 23.

Ozark has a rich history in cheerleading, including a brief coed presence in the late 1990s and one male athlete competing with JV in 2014. Since then, the program has remained all-girl, until now. With a drive to continue growing and competing at the highest level, coaches made the decision at the beginning of the 2024 season to take on a new challenge: Winning a State Title as a coed team.

“We are always looking for ways to build our program,” Ozark Varsity Cheer Coach Assistant Coach Megan Adams said. “We want to do what hasn’t been done yet, and we felt it was time for us to make the addition of Ozark Varsity Cheer Coed.”

While many high schools in Missouri have coed cheer teams, Adams said the addition of the Varsity Coed team makes Ozark one of only two high schools in Missouri to have both an all-girls and Coed varsity cheer squads.

The reasoning behind having both teams? Adams said each team offers different opportunities for athletes. While their routines are structured relatively the same way and each team competes in the same contests, just in different divisions, the true difference comes in the stunts.

“All-girl groups typically ‘group stunts’ where there is a flyer, two bases, and a back spot,” Adams said. “In coed, the males can stunt by themselves, as a single base, with a flyer.”

As the program gears up for tryouts for next year's team, Adams encourages any male athlete to consider trying out, adding that beyond getting to be a part of a nationally-ranked program, it also could open doors for scholarships post-high school.

“The long-standing stereotype that guys shouldn’t cheer is broken,” Adams said. “Males have reshaped the sport of cheerleading that was once a female-dominated sport. Ozark Cheer is a nationally-ranked program with an impressive legacy, including 16 state titles, countless regional championships, and the distinction of being the first cheer team inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. Our program’s legacy is unparalleled in the state.”

OHS students still have time to sign up to try out for the next year’s team, and can find all that information and the signup form linked here: Click Here

For updates on tryouts and the upcoming season, be sure to follow Ozark Varsity Cheer’s Instagram: @ozarkvarsitycheer.