Through the Years: Cheer 1994-2016
September 14, 2016
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
Few sports stack fans to the rafters like the MHSAA Competitive Cheer Finals, which set attendance records for 12 straight seasons through 2015 in growing to become one of the state's most well-cheered for sports at the championship level.
Today's "Through the Years" looks at two decades of MHSAA sponsorship of a sport that's also more than doubled in athlete participation over the last 15 seasons.
This feature is from the spring issue of benchmarks, built and written by Rob Kaminski. Scroll to the bottom of the page for links to our previous installments.
Previous installments
September 9: Wrestling - Read
August 26: Boys/Girls Skiing - Read
August 23: Boys/Girls Bowling - Read
August 19: Boys Ice Hockey - Read
August 16: Girls Gymnastics - Read
August 12: Boys/Girls Swimming & Diving - Read
August 9: Football - Read
August 5: Girls Volleyball - Read
August 2: Boys Soccer - Read
July 30: Boys Cross Country - Read
July 26: Girls Cross Country - Read
July 22: Boys/Girls Lacrosse - Read
July 19: Boys/Girls Tennis - Read
July 15: Boys/Girls Golf - Read
July 12: Girls Soccer - Read
July 8: Boys Track & Field - Read
July 5: Girls Track & Field - Read
July 1: Baseball - Read
June 28: Softball - Read
Be the Referee: Cheer Judges
By
Paige Winne
MHSAA Marketing & Social Media Coordinator
January 20, 2026
Be The Referee is a series of short messages designed to help educate people on the rules of different sports, to help them better understand the art of officiating, and to recruit officials.
Below is this week's segment – Cheer Judges - Listen
Ready! Set!
There are a lot of moving parts to a competitive cheer competition, including safety judges.
For each competition there are a minimum of two safety judges and 3 panel judges. But what does each position do?
Safety judges are there for safety – as simple as that sounds. During competition, they are mobile, circling the mat identifying illegal skills, improper spotting techniques, time infractions, and anything else deemed unsafe. They also are counting the number of competitors and floor formations for each team.
Panel judges – and there are three of them – are scoring the round. Each round is made up of skills, floor formations, transition moves and stunts that all must be evaluated.
Both safety and panel judges can deduct points for errors in the routine.
Previous 2025-26 editions
Jan. 13: Basketball Over the Back - Listen
Jan. 6: Bowling Ball Bounces Out of Gutter - Listen
Dec. 9: Puck on Goal Netting - Listen
Dec. 2: Goaltending vs. Basket Interference - Listen
Nov. 25: Football Finals Instant Replay - Listen
Nov. 18: Volleyball Libero Uniforms - Listen
Nov. 11: Illegal Substitution/Participation - Listen
Nov. 4: Losing a Shoe - Listen
Oct. 28: Unusual Soccer Goals - Listen
Oct. 21: Field Hockey Penalty Stroke - Listen
Oct. 14: Tennis Double Hit - Listen
Oct. 7: Safety in Football - Listen
Sept. 30: Field Hockey Substitution - Listen
Sept 23: Multiple Contacts in Volleyball - Listen
Sept. 16: Soccer Penalty Kick - Listen
Sept. 9: Forward Fumble - Listen
Sept. 2: Field Hockey Basics - Listen
Aug. 26: Golf Ball Bounces Out - Listen