New Franklin High School senior Gracie Martin signed her official letter of intent to be a member of the cheerleading squads at Central Methodist University starting in the fall. She will be a sideline cheerleader for football, basketball, and volleyball and says she eventually plans to move up to the competitive cheer team.

Martin cheered all four years in high school and two years in middle school at New Franklin, whipping up the crowd from the basketball sidelines. She said what she enjoyed most was engaging with the crowd during games.

“It’s fun also being able to pump up the crowd and see them get excited about the game,” she said. “And nothing’s more fun than going out and cheering with them.”

Martin said she is excited to move on to a college cheer program. She plans to stay a sideline cheerleader for her first year but hopes to advance to the competitive cheer team.

“I’m really excited,” she said. I’ve gotten a taste of it and some practices with CMU.”

The Central Methodist co-ed competitive cheer team recently returned from Daytona Beach, Fla., where it took sixth place in the 2024 NCA National Championships.

“If I do competition, I’ll get to travel all over the state and country,” she said.

Martin said she chose Central because she has been on the campus several times as a member of the band and was smitten with the environment. She loves the cheer team and all the sports CMU has to offer.

“It’s a very good cheer team,” Martin said. “They’re really good in competition especially. They have really good sports teams and it’s just an overall exciting atmosphere to be in. And they’re very supportive on their cheer team.”

And with Central just down the road, she’s never far from home.

When not cheering on the Eagles, Martin plans to major in nursing.