They aren’t on the sidelines anymore.
The South Philadelphia High School cheerleading team is enjoying the spotlight and a brand new trophy thanks to a stellar performance at the PIAA District 12 championships. The Rams won the Public League District 12 Class 2A Large Division championship and will now compete in the state championships later this month.
“We’ve been a squad that has been just on the sidelines for football games and basketball games,” said Rams coach Jennifer Pettinelli, who teaches life skills and special education at Southern. “We competed but it was never anything, the girls never understood the traditional style of cheerleading. But once we really dived into it and started practicing the (Universal Cheerleaders Association) style, they got really into it. Now, every time they go to the district championships, they want to do more.”
Southern’s only other appearance at a state championship was in 2022 after placing runner-up at districts. This year, they carry more momentum into the state competition, which will be held on Jan. 30-31 at Santander Arena in Reading.
“In 2022, we didn’t advance within the state competition,” Pettinelli said. “We performed once and were one-and-done when we were there. But just for Southern Cheer to make it to states was a big deal.”
Pettinelli said the run in 2022 was an accomplishment, but on a much smaller scale than the 2024-25 team.
“In 2022, we got there, but I feel like there wasn’t as much competition due to the pandemic, so it was nice, but we weren’t really competing against the big squads that normally get to the state level,” she said.
This year, they went against the best of the best, and the Rams lived up to the challenge.
“I always tell the girls we just want to pull off a nice, clean routine and leave it all on the mat,” Pettinelli said. “You want your stunts to go up and you want to hit, but if you don’t, just recover as fast as you can. We knew there was potential with this squad, but it was a nice surprise (to win), too.”
This year’s squad will officially have 17 athletes competing at states, which is just enough to be categorized as “Large School” in Class 2 AA. It is led by a trio of senior captains made up of Alake Reid of Southern and Kaliyah Brown and Anijah McCallough-Moore, who hail from Creative and Performing Arts as part of a co-op. Although Reid goes to Southern, she traveled a great deal to get there.
“Initially, she’s from Jamaica,” Pettinelli said. “She was on a squad in Jamaica and she really helped the girls here. She’s a really strong base and helps the girls with their technique.”
It made the perfect combination of leadership with Brown and Moore, who were mainstays.
“They are both strong leaders and help the team with encouragement. When Alake came in and showed her flow with the other two captains, it was just natural to have three captains.”
The makeup of the team has mainly been fresh and mostly inexperienced, but that is starting to change.
“The good thing about a lot of these girls is they are first-time cheerleaders,” Pettinelli said. “They are learning the techniques of how to traditionally and competitively cheer for the first time. I think that’s what makes this squad pretty special. Some of the girls, whether they cheered a little in middle school, this is the first time they are doing these routines at a competitive level.”
If things go well at states, there’s a chance to advance to a national competition, but the Rams are taking it day by day and enjoying the moment. There’s a lot to be proud of.
“I’m incredibly proud,” Pettinelli said. “I told them before they even hit the mat that I was proud of them. We did a small view in front of the school right before winter break. I said if they just do that at competition, I’m proud of them. To go from being hesitant to what position they are going to be in the stunt, to having this confidence that they have now, I couldn’t be prouder. It’s awesome.”
