KAMLOOPS – The Thompson Rivers WolfPack cheer team made history on the Lower Mainland this past weekend, earning a bid to the ICU University World Cup Championships after a pair of outstanding performances at the BC Sport Cheer Provincial Championships.
 
Entering teams in both the Game Day category as well as the University Premier All Girl category, the WolfPack finished first in the province for Game Day and a close second in the University Premier division.
 
Their performance of 120.70 over two runs in the University Premier division was strong enough for the judges to award the WolfPack the program's third-ever bid to the ICU University World Cup Championships set to take place in Orlando, Florida in January of 2023.
 
Finishing just behind the UVic Vikes in the University Premier division, the WolfPack continued their climb towards becoming the top team in B.C.
 
"With this being only our third season in the highest level of cheerleading, the program has grown at an astronomical pace," said WolfPack head coach Meaghan Blakely. "Our athletes put in the work, dedication, and heart that is providing intense competition against experienced teams. UBC, SFU and UVIC are experienced programs, incredible depth, talent, and have been around for a long time."
 
Putting together a pair of extremely strong runs, the WolfPack's 120.70 points put them behind the UVic Vikes (135.40) team that is undefeated since 2017, but well ahead of both SFU (93.65) and UBC Thunderbirds (78.70).
 
"The energy, strength, and resilience of our team was very apparent," said Blakely. "Our team proved this weekend that they have a massive amount of potential, and within the near future could cause a major upset for the University of Victoria."
 
Producing standout performances for the WolfPack were Melissa Yeoh and Kayla Zimka.
 
Yeoh, a third-year from Kitimat, provided the tumbling flair for TRU.
 
"Melissa largely was able to provide our team a decent tumbling score in our area of weakness," said Blakely. "Typically an athlete will do one or two skills per routine maximum, Melissa did seven with immaculate technique."

Zimka, a flyer and a captain of the team hails from Vancouver and is in her third year with the 'Pack.
 
"Kayla drove up our routine's difficulty score," said Blakely. "She performed and executed the highest level of difficulty skills in the history of our program, and has laid the foundation for the future of our team."
 
TRU was nearly perfect in the Game Day division to take home first place. Their tally of 77.20 was the second-highest score out of the entire competition and the highest score out of all collegiate teams. Hitting a routine with zero errors, the WolfPack were the only team to compete in the Game Day category in the hopes of bringing some growth to B.C. in what is an incredibly popular discipline of cheerleading in Eastern Canada and the United States.
 
Also at the event, Kamloops local Natalie Pietramala was one of four recipients of an academic scholarship from BC Sport Cheer.
 
The WolfPack will now look to tweak and increase the difficulty of their routines as they build towards the World Championship.