Last Saturday Montana State beat Northern Colorado 87-66 in the Big Sky tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Bobcats lot their conference opener to the Bears in early December but got revenge at the right time as they made the NCAA tourney for the 1st time since 1996. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Montana State cheerleader Jaclyn Saunders about dealing with COVID protocols and winning the conference tourney.
You grew up in Montana: what made you choose Montana State? My grandpa and sister both attended Montana State so I decided to keep the tradition going. I also wanted to stay in Montana and heard that MSU had a good Computer Science program.
How did you 1st get into cheerleading, and what is the best part? I started cheering during my freshman year of high school. A lot of my friends were going to try out and I thought that I would give it a try, too! The best part of cheer is the close-knit family type of relationship the girls and guys on the team have. There is truly nothing else like it!
What do you think the role of a college cheerleader is today, and how has it changed over time? The role of a college cheerleader today is as both an athlete and supporter of our athletic teams. I do not believe our role has changed much over time as much as the way that others have viewed us has. Cheerleaders may have just been seen as sideline entertainment in the past but now we are more recognized as strong athletes in our sport.
You are majoring in computer science: why did you pick that subject, and what is the post-graduation plan? I grew up playing computer games 24/7 with my sister. I was always curious how games like that were made, as well as computers in general. I guess I could have been considered a tomboy in my early years and that just carried on through college! Right now I am doing an internship involving web development so I might continue with something like that.
You were named to the undergraduate honor roll last spring: how do you balance your work on the court with your work in the classroom? I learned some major time management in high school while doing sports and taking difficult classes. Those skills transferred over to college although it is definitely not easy. I just have to stay motivated and make sure to spend some time with friends as well as get some rest.
How frustrating has it been to be a cheerleader for a great basketball team during a pandemic? There have definitely been some setbacks as far as the pandemic goes for both cheer/dance but we are very fortunate to be able to do our sport. We were only able to do one event the entire 2020-21 season so this year has been much better and nearly back to normal!
Last Saturday in the Big Sky tourney title game the Bobcats beat Northern Colorado: how excited was everybody to see them make the NCAA tourney for the 1st time since 1996? The atmosphere was amazing for that game. The stadium was nearly packed and probably 90% of the attendees were Bobcat fans. I was confident that they would make it to the championship game…but to have both the men’s and women’s teams winning the tournament was crazy. The fans were ecstatic to say the least.
How does your school decide who gets to go to the NCAA tournament, and what will it mean to you to see your group doing its thing in front of a national TV audience? For both the men’s and women’s tournaments we are allowed 12 spirit squad members plus a mascot. Our coach decides who goes to both the tournaments, but for cheer we try to have 6 couples for stunting purposes. Even seeing ourselves on the big screen during the Big Sky tournament was a huge deal. My family kept sending me videos of us on TV when the men’s game aired on ESPN. We are hoping to get some airtime for the games this week as well!
Does your squad have anything extra-special planned for the NCAA Tournament? We have been practicing hard all season and are just ready to show off our hard work and do our best to support the Cats.
You play Texas Tech on Friday: any predictions? I have heard from multiple people outside of MSU who have the Cats upsetting Texas Tech in their brackets. We have had great seasons in all of our athletics with football going to the national championship and now BOTH of our basketball teams in March Madness. We are on a roll and I do not think our winning streak will end any time soon!