East's Swanson, Riley sign with colleges
Jan. 20—CHEYENNE — Ellie Swanson describes herself as "not good" at any of sports she tried growing up.
She decided to try cheerleading during her freshman year at Cheyenne East.
"I wasn't great, but I got a lot better and fell in love with it," Swanson said. "There's something about the thrill of it that's like nothing else. I just wanted to build my skills and get stronger at it."
Swanson will earn her third varsity cheer letter for the Thunderbirds this year. Earlier this month, she was chosen as an all-state cheerleader for the second time in her career.
On Thursday afternoon, she signed a letter of intent to cheer for Dickinson State University in Dickinson, North Dakota. The Blue Hawks recently finished fourth at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics cheer competition.
Swanson's biggest area of growth in cheer was tumbling, East coach Emili Brooksmith said. Swanson came in with little tumbling knowledge and took it upon herself to improve those skills so she could be the total package on the mat.
"Having those skills gives you more of an edge," said Swanson, who would like to be a chiropractor. "The people who can stunt, cheer, dance and do good jumps are the ones who get picked first. I wanted to give myself a chance."
Swanson is so passionate about cheer now that she joined the Laramie-based Wyo Elite Storm all-star cheer organization in June. Swanson drives to Laramie three times a week for practice.
High school cheer divides itself into game day (sideline) cheer, all-girl stunt and co-ed stunt competitions. Organizations like Wyo Elite Storm are primarily focused on stunt, dance and tumbling.
"It's been a big commitment, and it's different than high school cheer, but it's been a lot of fun," Swanson said. "There are a lot more competitions we go to."
Riley signs with Bard
LaeAnna Riley fell hard for volleyball from the time she stepped on the court in elementary school.
"It was the thing I wanted to do the most," Riley said. "I'm very passionate about it. I'm constantly talking about it. I eat, sleep and breathe volleyball."
She'll continue to do that after signing a letter of commitment to continue her career at NCAA Division III Bard College in New York.
Riley's ascent to varsity volleyball was slow and steady. She worked her way through the freshman and sophomore teams before playing junior varsity as a junior and earning a varsity spot this season. East athletics director Jerry Schlabs described Riley as "a program kid."
"Those are the kids who stick with it and work their way through the program," said Schlabs, who spoke about Riley because East coach Nicole Quigley was unable to attend Thursday's signing event. "You need program kids if you're going to be successful as a team."
Riley has spent the past two off-seasons playing for the Norco Juniors program, which is based in Loveland, Colorado.
"They've taught me so much and helped me become a better player, and person, in general," Riley said.
Riley's decision about where to continue her career was based as much on academics as volleyball fit. She intends to study biology and medicine.
"I looked at the science programs they had and dug deep into researching the schools little by little," Riley said. "Bard has a great biology and medical program. I'm looking forward to being across the country, exploring a different area and growing as a person on my own."
Jeremiah Johnke is the WyoSports editor. He can be reached at jjohnke@wyosports.net or 307-633-3137. Follow him on Twitter at @jjohnke.
