Following Texas Woman’s University STUNT team’s historic first season, the Pioneers have come back with increased vigor and success.
This competition, rooted in cheer, includes four categories including partner stunts, jumping and tumbling, pyramids and tosses and team routines. The sport has begun to increase in popularity within college athletics with the NCAA DII division voting for STUNT to be labeled as an emerging sport.
Their historic first season in 2022 proved fruitful, with seven of the flipping and tumbling Pioneers being named to the College STUNT Association’s 2022 Academic Honor Roll for maintaining a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or higher. Lauren Murphy also made history as the first TWU STUNT athlete to be named on the All-American list as an All-American Honorable Mention by the College STUNT Coaches Association. Additionally, the STUNT team contributed to TWU’s placement in the top 20 in Division II for community service hours.
In the season opener against the Austin College Kangaroos, the Pioneers dominated the doubleheader, winning with a score of 20-0 and 20-1.
“Today was an amazing start to the season and a good confidence booster before our first major tournament in a couple of weeks,” TWU head coach Jasmine Owens said in a press release. “We continued to excel in jumps and tumbling while also improving on our pyramids and stunts.”
In the 2022 season, the Pioneers finished 1-13 and 10th overall in the final DI/DII college STUNT rankings. In their second season, the Pioneers remain hopeful in changing the narrative this year and collecting more wins. The STUNT team hosted two scrimmages in the preseason against Dallas Baptist University and the University of Texas at Tyler.
The TWU Pioneers will face off again in a tournament in Dallas on Feb. 17 and 18. They will face off against DBU again, as well as Concordia College and William Jessup university.
Maddie Ray can be reached via email at mray10@twu.edu.
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