Cheering along the local sidelines at football games takes plenty of skill and an ability to focus and perform in front of a crowd. But doing so on the big stage, among the best cheer squads from around the country and with a national title on the line, is something else for a group of 13-year-olds.

Members of the Newtown Youth Cheerleading D13 team managed to overcome their nerves and rise to the top. They cheered, jumped, tumbled, and danced to a title at the American Youth Cheer National Championship, in Lakeland, Fla., on December 13. Newtown was tops among a dozen teams representing nine regions that competed at Lakeland Center Arena, about an hour outside of Orlando.

“They did their routine with power, pride, confidence. They knew every step of the way what to do. They were unflappable,” Head Coach Julie Luby said.

Newtown won the D13 Small Red division, which comprised teams of 18 or less participants (Newtown has 16 girls on the roster). The Nighthawks scored 81 points to edge out the second-place New Jersey Brick Dragons, who scored 80.2. Teams came from states including California, Virginia, and Texas, to name a few.

Each squad showed its skills during a two-and-a-half-minute routine. The girls performed a cheer not set to music, using stunts, signs, megaphones, and pom-poms. They then performed to music selected by their high school student demonstrators. During this portion, the girls executed basket tosses, along with tumbling, jumps, stunts, and a pyramid. Their fast-moving display of talent was concluded with a dance segment.

The atmosphere made for a difficult setting in which to perform, Luby noted, since the girls are more accustomed to competing under the sun than in the spotlight. “It’s a big arena. They dim the lights,” she explained. “It’s very dramatic.

“They were as nervous as can be, but they were also as prepared as can be,” Luby added. “They did an incredible job.”

Newtown’s team advanced to the national competition because of a top-three finish in a regional competition in late November. The girls, in fact, won the regional championship. Newtown’s D10 and D12 teams both had third-place finishes to qualify, but Luby noted that Newtown’s coaches believe in only sending the most experienced cheerleaders because of the pressure involved.

Luby said she and the other coaches talk with the girls to keep them loose before competitions, but added that there was an unfamiliar set of circumstances before the national competition. Coaches are introduced, leaving the team members by themselves, waiting to compete, and following instructions from event organizers.

“The hardest feeling as a coach is leaving them,” said Luby, explaining that coach always wants the last, reassuring word before competition.

Nonetheless, the Newtown girls pulled through. And this wasn’t the first time. A former team of 13-year-olds won a national title in 2012. Luby coached that team and her daughter, now a high school cheerleader and D13 team demonstrator, Hannah Luby, was a cheerleader on that squad.

The expense is another reason not all of the teams make the trip, Luby notes. The Newtown Youth Football and Cheerleading organization holds fundraisers throughout the season, which begins in early August, to fund its budget. The girls also solicited donations during the three-week period between regionals and nationals to help offset the $1,000-plus cost for each team member, typically with one parent, to fly and stay three nights in Florida, Luby said.

Members of the D13 national champions include assistant coaches Diane McCabe and Rhonda Timmons, demonstrators Isabelle Silver, Calista Connors, and Hannah Luby, and cheerleaders Catherine Pendergast, Erin Kowalski, Briana Krasowski, Ashley Marron, Brianna Lovely, Marlena Young, Courtney Cohane, Linda Bomova, Heidi Alvarez, Julia Sullivan, Isabella Morganti, Brianna Giglio, McKenna Timmons, Ashley Hammond, Tess Hubbard, and Amelia Smith.

“The coolest thing about these girls is their great ability to work hard, play hard and stay humble,” said Luby, adding that they have been practicing three nights a week since school started, and four nights a week in August — two hours at a time. “At every practice they work really hard and laugh a lot. They are kind to one another and never blame others when things don’t work, which happens often when they are learning new stunts.”

Despite the success this group had en route to the national title, winning it all still came as a surprise to the girls, Luby said.

“They made no assumptions about earning a trophy at nationals. I believe they were truly surprised beyond words to hear Newtown Nighthawks announced as the champions,” she said.