Pflaumer hopes to earn a spot on the SAU's competition squad.

Sport Spotlight: John Pflaumer-Cheerleading

By: Kathleen Sulikowski

Posted: 2/4/10

John Pflaumer is not a typical St. Ambrose male athlete. SAU has many sport teams and last year one more team was added for the first time - cheerleading. Pflaumer is the first male cheerleader since it became a SAU sport.
Pflaumer is a sophomore majoring in TV/Radio. He joined the SAU cheerleading team this new school semester.
"It is different from everything I have never done before, the only other sport I have done is cross country in high school," Pflaumer said.
His first game was Jan. 25 during the SAU women's basketball game. With only having one practice prior to the game, Pflaumer fought the butterflies and went out on the court anyway.
"I was pretty nervous, but before the game we had one other practice," Pflaumer said "The practice made [it] a little bit better and [I] got more comfortable with what I was supposed to be doing."
Male cheerleaders are a new concept in SAU sports.
"Some people in the crowd gave me some weird looks because they have never seen a St. Ambrose male cheerleader before," Pflaumer said.
Despite the looks the crowd gave Pflaumer, he feels that his first time on the court went well.
"I only went out three or four times but it was fun," he said. "I really enjoyed it, I just need to fix some things here and there."
Pflaumer had never thought about being a cheerleader until the idea of a male cheerleaders was brought up by a member of the cheerleading team.
"One of the girls on the team told me I should be a cheerleader and I thought she was joking at first," Pflaumer said. "She said 'no we are really looking.' I thought it could be fun so I talked to the coach and I was on the team."
After winter break, Pflaumer went to his first practice. They threw him right into all of the stunts and cheers.
"At first I was a little nervous and a little intimidated because all the girls there knew what they were doing," Pflaumer stated. "But all the girls are really nice and show me how to do a lot of the things."
The coach and the rest of Pflaumer's team helped him throughout the first day and motivated him.
"If I was messing up on things, which I was, they would do it and show me how to fix it," he said. "They would also show me different ways on how to perform the stunts."
Pflaumer learned how to catch and throw the girls properly so neither the flyers nor Pflaumer gets hurt. Pflaumer also said that this sport keeps him physically involved in lifting weights and floor work out every day.
Pflaumer hopes to continue cheerleading throughout his college career. He also hopes that more male cheerleaders will be motivated to join the team.
"I also hope to work my way up to doing competition," he said.
While continuing cheerleading, Pflaumer wants people to realize that cheerleading is not just for women and it is a sport.
"I found that it is very physically demanding," Pflaumer said. "And I am motivated to be the best and make the team look good because I am the only guy on the team."