After placing second at its first two competitions of the season, the varsity cheer squad at Deer Valley High finally earned the first-place trophy in the Varsity Novice Pom division at the USA cheer competition held in the Wolverine gym Jan. 13.

The varsity squad had already earned two bids to the upcoming National Championships in March and last month's victory in its six-team division made three. The Lady Wolverines continued to bring their two-and-a-half-minute, high-energy, Vogue-themed routine, choreographed by former DV cheerleader Tiffani Grant, to competition in order to receive valuable comments from the judges.

"We got a lot of compliments on our dancing," said head coach Louise Green. "That was nice to hear. But we were also told we need to clean up a few areas and work on our execution. We'll be working hard before March."

The JV and freshman squads also competed at the January event, earning a pair of second-place finishes.

Of the 23 varsity cheerleaders, just 14 will head to Anaheim for the Big Show March 22 through 25. Green has high hopes for her athletes, noting the team's marked improvement since

last season.

"This team is definitely technically stronger than last year," she said. "But we still have a lot of cleanup work to do before nationals."

In an effort to raise money for its trip down to Anaheim, the DV cheer program invites the community to attend its upcoming fund-raiser Feb. 26 from 5 to 8 p.m. at Straw Hat Pizza in Antioch (3001 Delta Fair Blvd.). A portion of the proceeds will go back to the program.