National Champions: Jessup STUNT wins first National Championship in program history

In just its second season as a program, William Jessup University STUNT has made tremendous strides. After going winless in year one, the university's Warriors achieved several milestones in 2022, including first win, first shutout and biggest margin of victory. The greatest milestone that William Jessup University achieved, however, was a national championship, the university's first since 1995 when it was called San Jose Bible College. STUNT is an emerging sport that is governed by USA Cheer. It consists of four quarters where the two teams compete in pre-choreographed routines head-to-head with a point being awarded to the team that performs the routine the best. STUNT is one of the top growing sports in both high school and collegiate athletics. Entering Saturday's National Championship game, William Jessup University had never beaten top-ranked Vanguard University. The Lions entered the game as the defending national champions and winners of four straight against William Jessup University, including one win the previous day in the tournament. That didn't matter to the Warriors, who defeated Vanguard in a thrilling 9-8 comeback victory for the program's first national championship. The victory was extra sweet for William Jessup University, which won the title on its home floor. "There's really no words to even describe it. Last year, we worked our butt off; we put in the groundwork to build the foundation. We didn't win any games but that was our preparation," said head coach Alexis Welch. "We were working for year two. And now to be able to win a national championship as a second-year program. It just feels amazing." Welch added that the Warriors were flustered in their first meeting of the tournament with Vanguard, which was a 16-6 loss, but had a different mentality for Saturday's championship game. "We changed our attitudes. We came in knowing we could win," Welch said. "That's what we put out on the mat today and it's so exciting to see that translate into a national championship." Welch offered high praise for her team for not losing hope, even after falling behind in the first quarter of the game. Twice, William Jesusp University went on a run to tie things up and once more to take the lead heading into the fourth quarter. "They had such a fire and such a fight in them and that's what we wanted. We know that we're only a second-year program," Welch said. "And so our goal was to just go out there and play in the National Championship and so we didn't want to go down without a fight and that was our goal," Welch said. Welch "is excited to get back to work" for year three. Although the Warriors will have a target on their back, Welch said, she hopes that the team can go for a repeat in 2023.