Tea Area cheer places fourth at State, dance finishes 13th: Four Titans earn All-State honors at Class AA competition

The Tea Area High School competitive cheer and dance teams wrapped up their seasons at the 2026 SDHSAA State Cheer and Dance Competition, held Saturday, Oct. 24, at Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid City.

The Titans earned a fourth-place finish in the Class AA Cheer Grand Champion standings, while the competitive dance team finished 13th overall. Five Titans also received All-State recognition.

In competitive cheer, Tea Area recorded a score of 275.5 to finish fourth among 17 teams. O’Gorman claimed the State Championship with a score of 295, narrowly edging Sioux Falls Jefferson, which finished second with 294. Harrisburg placed third with 287.5, while Rapid City Central rounded out the top five with 274.

The Titans also competed in two dance categories, earning an eighth-place finish in Pom with a score of 255 and a 10th-place finish in Hip Hop with a score of 247.

Brandon Valley won the Pom title with a score of 296, followed by Yankton at 288 and Sioux Falls Washington at 286. Harrisburg claimed the Hip Hop championship with a score of 294, followed by Sioux Falls Jefferson at 292.5 and Sioux Falls Washington at 285.5.

In the Dance Grand Champion standings, Tea Area finished 13th among 18 teams with 24 points. Brandon Valley captured the overall dance title with 40 points, followed by Harrisburg with 39. Sioux Falls Jefferson and Sioux Falls Washington each finished with 36 points, placing third and fourth, respectively.

Tea Area also had several athletes recognized for their individual accomplishments. Emersyn Cauwels, Sarah Wilson and Tessa Brech earned All-State honors in competitive cheer, while Brech and Leah Waldner received All-State recognition in competitive dance.

Members of the Titans’ competitive dance team this season included seniors Tessa Brech, Emersyn Cauwels, Ella Rood, Hailee Slattery and Leah Waldner; junior Jenny Kloos; sophomores Kinsler Derry and Elizabeth Tuohino; freshmen Ayah Miller and Autumn Tielbur; and eighth graders Alexis Biddle and Taytem Petrik.

The competitive cheer roster included seniors Tessa Brech, Emersyn Cauwels and Hailee Slattery; junior Sarah Wilson; eighth graders Gracie Gniffke, Isabella Peters, Paesyn Peterson and Tayah Stanford; and seventh graders Camille Brown, Cali Erickson, Kendall Johnsen, Addison McGinnis, Naomi Smith and Samantha Wilson.