Kinley Mininger '25 Recruiting Profile

My mom noticed my flexibility and strength at an early age. When I was only 18 months old, she put me in a mommy and me gymnastics class, and I just never stopped. When I was six, my mom asked if I wanted to start cheering competitively at the same gym my older sister went to. I fell in love with the sport. I loved being a flyer. The rush of a crowd and hearing people cheering was one of the highlights of the sport. When COVID hit, and we could no longer perform in front of a crowd, I lost some of that joy. That's when I decided to try other sports, like volleyball and swim. It wasn't the same though. So my freshman year, I decided to try out for the stunt team at my school. I really enjoyed being back on a team and competing. I won MVP that year as a freshman, and the coaches convinced me to try out for sideline. I was one of two sophomores that year to make the varsity team. I fell in love with sideline cheer, and I decided it was something I wanted to pursue on into college. I have very supportive coaches who challenge me with new stunts and push me to learn more advanced tumbling skills. My sophomore year of stunt we were undefeated and won our division. While we were eliminated the first round of state competition, seeing the other teams really made us want to go back next year and make it farther. I am constantly pushing myself to be better and learn that next new skill, whether that means staying after practice or going to private lessons at my old cheer gym. I am looking forward to continuing my journey in cheer at the collegiate level.