Cheerleader's team dwindled to just her, but she kept going — then her 1-girl routine took first place and went viral
Cheerleader's team dwindled to just her, but she kept going — then her 1-girl routine took first place and went viral
Jerry Faull Thu, November 5, 2026 at 4:21 PM UTC
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Coach Kenya Barbour, left, and Jorgia Walls. (Courtesy Jorgia Walls)
We all need to be inspired in this life — and those moments that urge us to keep going and achieving can come from just about anywhere.
In this case, 14-year-old Jorgia Walls from Lawrenceville, Ga., is what you're looking for to remind you that perseverance matters and can pay off big for you as well as in the hearts and minds of others.
You see, Walls, an eighth-grader, recently ended up as the only remaining member of her cheerleading team for the Peachtree Ridge Youth Athletic Association. What started as an eight-girl squad in early summer became a single-girl operation by September, with the summer heat in Georgia and family factors forcing the other seven to give up on the endeavor.
But Walls refused to quit when told her only options were to join the seventh-grade team or quit altogether.
Walls did not like either of those options, as she was dedicated to cheering on the eighth-grade football team her squad had been assigned to and also wanted to represent eighth-graders in her final "cheer-off" in her final season (Peachtree Ridge's football and cheer programs end after eighth grade as the kids head off to high school).
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So she decided to go it alone, showing up to football games to cheer on her team while getting ready to compete solo in the cheer-off with the help of her coach, Kenya Barbour.
“It made me happy that I could try to do it by myself,” Jorgia told People, “and sad because I was going to miss my team.”
Walls and Barbour put together a routine to Jackson 5’s “I Want You Back” and, as they say, the rest is history. And, of course, as inspiring as it comes.
Win or lose, Walls' impact was cemented in the hearts of the 1,500 or so people in attendance for the final competition. But, to no one's surprise, she won the whole dang thing.
We salute you, Jorgia, for showing us all what the true power of dedication and bravery.
Please take a break from your daily grind and enjoy this post from the CBS Evening News chronicling her amazing journey:
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
