The Black and White

Sunday, March 15th, Pilgrim’s Competitive Cheer Team took their 3rd title, finishing 1st in the Division II RIIL (Rhode Island Interscholastic League) State Championship and 3rd overall in the state.

The State Championship was held at URI’s Ryan Center over the weekend, hosting 26 teams in total. The Patriots were up against schools from across the state, trying to reclaim their title as champions from 2024. Each routine has chosen music unique to them, Pilgrim’s including this year’s mantra: “We don’t break. We grow.” 

Their routine was themed around D.C. comic book villains, dressing in colorful makeup, and doing their hair. With a dynamic team and a winning performance, the Patriots scored 85.6 points in total, reaching the top with a 4.2 point difference between first and second. 

Cheer Captain Taylor Tatarian says, in regards to the team’s success, “…this feels amazing, we worked very hard this season and definitely struggled but the end result was worth it and so rewarding.” Pilgrim’s competitive cheer team competes in February and March, but their season begins as early as July to start preparing for football season and start to build their skills for competition. As to the team’s success, earlier competitions led up to states over the past several months, with the team attending 7 other competitions in the 2026 season, including RICCA a week prior to states.

With three seniors leaving the team, including Aubrey Butler, Taylor Tatarian, and London Furtado, PHS Cheer gave them the perfect winning send off. Tatarian also shared her faith in the team, “Going forward I have a lot of confidence in the team, three seniors are graduating but we have a lot of very talented underclassmen.” And, with one performance at Worcester State University the following weekend, the 2026 PHS Cheer has closed out their 2025-2026 season as state champions.