ROCKINGHAM — Two former Richmond Senior High School cheerleaders and teammates took part in one of the biggest college football Bowl Game weeks of the season following Christmas Day.
Peyton Babson (class of 2018) and Mary Catherine Coltrane (Class of 2016) both made trips north with their respective cheer teams to take part in two of the five Bowl Games played on Friday, Dec. 27.
The pair of cheerleaders were teammates at Richmond under head coach Meredith Hood when Coltrane was a senior and Babson was a sophomore.
Coltrane, a senior psychology and religion double major, cheered on the Wake Forest University Demon Deacons (Atlantic Coast Conference) in the Pinstripe Bowl, played at Yankee Stadium against Michigan State University (Big 10 Conference).
It marked the fourth consecutive season Coltrane and the Deacs made a Bowl Game appearance, which is something the program had never accomplished in its history until head coach Dave Clawson took over in 2014.
Wake Forest would fall to the Spartans 27-21, making it the first time in her cheerleading career Coltrane didn’t see a Bowl Game win. During her first three seasons, the Deacons won the Military Bowl (2016), Belk Bowl (2017) and Birmingham Bowl (2018).
But the loss didn’t take away from what she called a “once-in-a-lifetime” experience.
“Being a part of Demon Deacon history, and going to four consecutive Bowl Games, has been more than a dream come true,” Coltrane said. “It has been the best chapter of my life.
“This was my favorite Bowl Game because New York City at Christmastime is so extravagant,” she added. “You win some and you lose some, but going to four Bowl Games is an accomplishment.”
Another major milestone Coltrane said made this season special was cheering on the Deacs to a “Big 4 Championship.” During the regular season, Wake Forest (8-5) defeated Duke University, North Carolina State University and the University of North Carolina.
Babson, who is a sophomore public policy major and history minor at UNC Chapel Hill, took part in the Tar Heels’ first Bowl Game appearance since 2016 (Sun Bowl), and celebrated the team’s first Bowl win since 2013 (Belk Bowl).
Making the move up from the junior varsity team to the varsity squad this season, she cheered UNC to a 55-13 blowout win over Temple University in the Military Bowl. The game was played at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium near the campus of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.
“It was a lot bigger of an atmosphere,” Babson said of the experience. “We walked in a two-mile parade to the stadium and then a team of skydivers delivered the game ball onto the field. There were a lot of cool pre-game activities.
“The better we play the more we have to do,” she added with a laugh. “We do first-down celebrations and we tumble in the end zone every time we score. So this year was a lot different because we won more games and made it to a Bowl Game.”
The 2019 football season in Chapel Hill was abuzz with the return of head coach Mack Brown and his high energy and dance moves, which saw the Tar Heels improve from a two-win season during Babson’s freshman year to 7-6 this year.
Both cheerleaders arrived in New York and Washington, D.C.,respectively, a day before the Bowl Games, allowing them some free time to explore the sights and sounds of The Big Apple and the Nation’s Capital.
Coltrane went to Times Square with her teammates, while also checking out the Radio City Rockettes and 1 World Trade Center with her family. She added that cheering in the “iconic Yankee Stadium” was a bucket list moment.
On her first night in D.C., which is where the UNC teams stayed, Babson and a gaggle of other cheerleaders went ice skating, something she hadn’t done in a long time. The day following the win over Temple, Babson explored the Lincoln Memorial, the World War II Memorial and the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History.
“Cheering at the game was a lot of fun, especially with so many (UNC) fans there,” Babson explained. “But my favorite part was ice skating with the team.
“I was a little nervous at first, but by the end I was skating really well and it was a good time,” she added. “Other people there knew we were the cheer team, and it made it a lot more fun. It was good to bond with everyone.”
For Coltrane, who has cheered in several high-profile games, this year was about more than just cheering on her Demon Deacons. She noted the program’s success, especially with the senior class, and how Coach Clawson has helped generate a winning mindset during her tenure.
“Our football program has grown tremendously and it has been an honor and a privilege to be a part of the journey,” she explained. “For as long as I can remember, cheerleading and dance have been my greatest passions and joy.
“This was such a humbling experience,” Coltrane explained. “This game was special because it brought in the largest student section since the 2006 Orange Bowl (Florida State vs. Penn State). There were close to 10,000 Wake Forest fans -- the crowd was electric and the energy was amazing.”
Babson called her first Bowl Game experience “really fun” and “definitely one of the best games” she’s cheered in. She credited her work in the offseason and “noticeable improvement” to get her moved up to the varsity level in her second season, something she says “rarely happens.”
While both cheerleaders are in the middle of participating in basketball season, Coltrane is preparing for the next chapter of her life. The reigning Wake Forest homecoming queen, she’s currently in the process of applying for law school.
“One of the greatest things about my time at Wake Forest was taking a leadership class with the business school,” she explained. “Being an athlete is not just about being an athlete, and there’s a lot of things we have to do off the field.
“Wake Forest prioritizes building character and leadership skills, and teaching us morals,” she closed. “My biggest takeaway is the person I’ve developed into thanks to my time here. God has allowed me to have this wonderful opportunity and I’m excited to see what He has in store for the future.”
Babson will continue her undergraduate studies as her second semester of sophomore year is set to begin in January. In the meantime, she’s excited to cheer on the Tar Heels basketball team, like she did Monday when UNC and head coach Roy Williams held off Yale University 70-67 in the Dean E. Smith Center.
