MONMOUTH, Ill. — The Monmouth College cheerleading squad will make history Wednesday as it travels to the United Performing Association’s National Cheerleading Competition in Minneapolis, Minn.

After months of hard work and practice, the team will compete among the country’s best cheerleading squads in hopes of winning a national championship.

The current season began in April of 2002 and, after three summer camps, the students began practicing 15 hours a week once they returned to MC for the fall semester.

“At the end of October, we started to focus more on this competition, and now we practice for at least three hours every night,” said the team’s captain, Liz Ruebush, a junior from Blandinsville. “It’s amazing how much work goes into a two-minute routine. But we’ve tried to do an excellent job of putting it all together. Our routine is definitely action-packed. We combine cheers, stunts, gymnastics, jumps, dance and other cheerleading elements. It takes a lot of athletic ability and endurance to put all these elements into a routine, especially this one.”

Ruebush praised her teammates as being “by far, the most hard-working and dedicated squad” she’s seen.

“We truly are the definition of a team,” she said. “We have overcome so many obstacles to get where we are today. For three months, we didn’t have a coach, so we did everything on our own, as a team. But now, we’re fortunate to have a new coach, Lari Bunch.”

In order to make the trip to Minnesota, the cheerleaders raised more than $8,000 through such activities as cheer clinics, working at community events such as Summerfest and the Warren County Prime Beef Festival, soliciting for donations, serving concessions at sporting events and bagging groceries for tips at Econo Foods. Aside from the money that the team has raised, each cheerleader also has to pay about $350 in out-of-pocket costs.

The Monmouth squad will perform in front of 3,500 people at the new Minneapolis Convention Center. Over 100 teams will be attending the competition, including the University of Minnesota and University of Wisconsin, who will be in MC’s division.

“This is our first national competition, which makes it so monumental,” said Ruebush. “Two years ago, we competed for the first time in the UCA Midwest Competition. The cheerleading program at Monmouth College is growing at a rapid rate. In just a few short years, we’ve gone from a non-competitive squad to competing for a national championship. This is a thrilling experience for every member of our team.”

In addition to Ruebush, the team includes juniors Channon Corzatt of Stronghurst, Gina Wolf of Erie, Bridget Lee of Oswego and Stacie Finlen of Normal; sophomores Terra Nevitt of Lacon, Char Brue of Blandinsville and Michelle Moore of Knoxville; and freshmen Nicole Kaczmarek of Oswego, Emily Eddington of La Harpe, Beth Lindberg of Galva, Maggie Gallentine of Prophetstown, Christina Reiner of Clarendon Hills, Amber Bowman of Taylor Ridge, Lisa Pryor of Galesburg and Jeniah Chesser of Wyoming.