Freshman cheerleader and FFA member Collyns Grace Cooper is already making her mark at Mustang High School, balancing the demands of the sidelines with the responsibility of the show ring. A flyer and tumbler for the Broncos, Cooper has embraced the busy life that comes with competitive and school cheer while also caring for the show steers that mean so much to her.
Cooper, a ninth grader, said the person who inspires her most is her longtime cheer coach, Paige Dossy. Dossy, a former cheerleader who now owns her own cheer gym, has coached Cooper since she was 4 years old. “She inspires me because she was a cheerleader growing up and now, she owns her own cheer gym and has been my coach since I was 4 years old, and I have looked up to her since then,” Cooper said.
On the Mustang cheer squad, Cooper’s role keeps her in the center of the action as both a flyer and a tumbler. She said the best part of being on the team is the relationships that form through long practices and shared goals. “What I enjoy most about being a member on the cheer team is the friendships I have gained and the bonding we all have,” she said. Practices can run two hours a day, three to four times a week, as the team juggles both competitive cheer and school cheer responsibilities.
Away from the mat, Cooper’s time is often spent with her livestock. “In my free time I like to walk my show steers around and take care of them,” she said, adding that she also enjoys doing fun things with friends and family. Her involvement in athletics has shaped how she approaches both school and FFA. “Athletics has taught me discipline, resilience, and how to push through challenges, which are skills I know I’ll carry with me for the rest of my life,” Cooper said.
Cooper also looks up to a teammate, Journee, whose attitude sets a standard in the gym. “A teammate I look up to is Journee because of her hard work, positive attitude, and the way she always encourages everyone around her to be better,” she said. In the classroom, history is Cooper’s favorite subject, and she points to teacher Ryan Waggoner as a favorite as she continues to build her future at Mustang.
