NEW WASHINGTON — Chelsea Niedermier has been cheering since the seventh grade.
Now, the Buckeye Central senior knows her cheerleading career will not end at graduation next spring.
Niedermier signed a letter of intent to continue cheering next year at Ashland University.
“Ashland University has always been my first choice because it feels like home,” Niedermier said. “There is something special about the students and staff on this campus. My sister is currently an Ashland student. Therefore, I have been on campus numerous times before making my decision.”
While Niedermier visited and considered other colleges including Kent State University and Ursuline College there was no doubt in her mind that Ashland was the place for her.
“I will be able to grow significantly as a student and as an athlete over the next four years,” Niedermier said. “I fell in love with the cheerleading staff and the campus itself from very early on because everyone is extremely supportive and welcoming. The cheerleading coaching staff is top notch and the girls on the squad are truly some of the kindest girls I have ever met.”
Niedermier will major in biology with a pre-medicine focus. After obtaining her bachelor’s degree at Ashland, she plans to attend medical school to become a surgeon.
At Buckeye Central, Niedermier was nurtured in cheering by several coaches in middle school and high school. Stacy Gardner was her coach in seventh grade and through much of high school. Jami Barlow was her eighth-grade coach and Maranda Leitzy is her coach for her senior year.
Niedermier participated in marching band for six years and is currently the vice president. She also ran track for two years in middle school but decided that she wanted to cheer after high school and made that her focus.
With the support of her cheer coaches and her parents, Amy and Mark, Niedermier is going to Ashland prepared to pursue her passion.
“Coach Stacy always pushed me to do my best and never stopped encouraging me to follow my dreams of college cheer,” Niedermier said. “Coach J always believed in me even when I doubted myself and she taught me a large amount of my cheer knowledge today. Coach Leitzy has taught me discipline and she also enhanced my cheerleading skills immensely.
“Coach Leitzy recorded my Ashland University recruiting videos and made sure that I was geared up to perform my best,” Niedermier added. “Without these coaches, I would not have been able to live out my dream of becoming a college cheerleader.”