Cheer teams play an important role in a school’s athletics throughout the school year. They help bring the school spirit and keep the fans involved in the games. But a cheer squad is only as good as its members. Chandler’s head cheer coach, Cynthia Snider, says that her squad has developed a great chemistry together.
“I think our greatest strength is the longevity of our cheerleaders and the success our program has had over the years,” she said. “We have great coaches in our program that work together to make all levels the best they can be.”
Snider is in her twenty-fifth season of leading the Lion’s cheer team. Last year, she was honored to be named to the Oklahoma Cheer Coaches Association Coaches Hall of Fame. She has also been named All-State coach in 2012 and OCA Coach of the year in 2023.
Her teams have also followed her lead and racked up their own hardware. Some of their honors are OSSAA Competitive Cheer Qualifiers in 2022, 2021, 2019, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2009, and 2008, and Regional Champions in 2022 and 2010. The team also won the UCA Gameday Regional Championship in 2018 and the UCA Team Tradition award in 2024.
Macael Marcus is a senior on this year’s squad and she enjoys cheering on the Lions along with her teammates.
“I’ve always enjoyed our school spirit,” Marcus said. “I can’t help but love everyone’s work ethic, everyone goes to practice with the right mindset.”
When the team is not cheering or practicing their routines, coach Snider says that her squad enjoys hanging out and doing things together.
“We enjoy swimming parties, dinners together, Christmas parties, making posters together and bus rides to competitions are always fun,” she said. “We play leapfrog for part of our workout or do burpees to music.”
Another senior on the team, Makenna Miller, says that making memories with her teammates is something that she likes most about being on the team.
“What I enjoy most about my team is definitely getting to know all the girls and making tons of great memories together,” Miller said. “I also enjoy the football games on Friday night and seeing how we all come together as a community to show our town spirit.”
Along with Marcus and Miller, the team is made up of some outstanding athletes including seniors Jordan Glasgow, Macie Davis, Makayela Dawkins, Brynn Lewis, Emilia Phipps, and Jade Glasgow, along with juniors Jayden Tabor, Rylee Capps, Chloe Hyde, Chevy Almand, Jaycee Cross, and Harley Cargill. Rounding out the rest of the squad are sophomores Lizzy Kiewer, Carley Frazier, Peyton Sowder, Royanna Berry, and Brooklyn Hammons; and freshmen Layla Gilpatrick, Alyssa Jones, Macie Bridges, Shylee Almand, Abigail Foster, and Lydia Wayland.
