Editors note: This story was clarified to reflect that Ephrata's cheer and stunt team has only been competing for three years but has had a sideline cheer and stunt program for 10 years.

BATTLE GROUND — The Ephrata High School cheer and stunt team won its first-ever state championship Saturday, Feb. 7, taking the Class 2A Game Day Coed title at the WIAA State Cheer Championships at Battle Ground High School.

The Tigers scored 87.9 points to top a nine-team field, finishing 3.1 points ahead of runner-up Lakewood (84.8). Aberdeen placed third with 82.3, followed by North Kitsap (81.6), Ridgefield (80.4), Olympic (79.7), Foster (78.8), Fife (78.6) and Othello (73.1).

Head coach Heather Wood called the title the start of something special for a program in just its third year of competition and a moment the team and community won't soon forget.

Members of the 2025-26 state championship squad are Annjolenn Ahmann, Hannah Allen, Carson Andrus, Jacob Bartlett, Amalya Bastida, Jaelyn Brown, Payton Canfield, Isabelle DeHerrera, Brody Fleurkens, Bryson Fleurkens, Chastaty Garcia-Zepeda, Alexys Hallatt, Izzlee Haney, Victor Hernandez Gutierrez, Cooper Kriete, Kimberly Ortiz, Michael Park, Charles Poirrier, Madilynn Pruneda Gonzales, Yaritza Rodriguez Gomez, Kennedy Schafer, and Scarlett Uribe.

Their championship was the pinnacle of a season-long turnaround.

Ephrata opened the year in November at Ferris High School in Spokane scoring just 58.2 in Game Day, well short of the 70-point minimum to qualify for state. The Tiger squad didn't achieve a qualifying score until its fourth competition, posting a 76 at the Battle in the Desert in January at Hanford High School.

But from there, scores kept climbing, earning a 84.8 at Moses Lake’s competition, then the 87.9 title-winning performance at state.

Wood, now in her 14th year coaching the EHS program, credited constant adjustments after each meet. Her coaching staff reviewed film and judges' critiques, then reworked elements of the routine between competitions. She said the squad made the cheer more crowd-friendly, added creative transitions into the fight song, and introduced new elements — forming letters with five boys on the ground, plus a megaphone and flag routine.

Each time the team pulled off a new skill in practice, it got added into the routine, raising the difficulty level and the potential score.

The Tigers’ first-place trophy is the first state cheer title in EHS history. The WIAA, which classifies cheer as an activity rather than a sport, began holding state championships in 2007. Schools compete in categories based on classification, team size, and gender. Programs at the 2A level can qualify in 10 different divisions.

Ephrata has fielded a coed cheer squad for roughly a decade and placed fourth at state last year in both Game Day and Traditional divisions. Fifteen coed 2A teams competed in Game Day this season, with nine qualifying for state.

Ephrata also competed in 1A/2A Tumbling Coed division on Saturday, placing third with a 71.9 score out of six state-qualifying teams. Awards in Tumbling go to the top two finishers. Bellingham won the division at 76.5, followed by runnerup Hudson's Bay at 72 to narrowly edge the Tigers.

Wood said a fall and an infraction cost the team eight points in deductions at the state meet.

Ephrata's Tumbling scores followed a similar track of consistent improvement over the course of the season. The Tigers opened at 46.7 with six points in deductions at Ferris and climbed to a season-best 76.9 at Moses Lake prior to their 71.9 posting at state.

But the Tigers were undeterred by that setback. Game Day competition came just hours later, and Wood said her squad was determined to make the most of their next opportunity.

"They stepped onto the mat with incredible energy, and their enthusiasm resonated with the audience," Wood said of the Tigers' championship performance.

The size of the Battle Ground venue can be overwhelming, but returning members from last year's state trip helped their teammates settle in, said Wood.

"It truly was a team effort, and I couldn't be prouder of how everyone stepped up," she said.