For the past two-plus decades, Tracey Hartman has been the coach of the highly successful LHS cheerleading program. Since the start of the 2021 season, she has been joined by her daughter, Hannah, a standout athlete for the Blue Devils.
“I have been coaching for 25 years and it has brought me great joy to watch my athletes find a love for the sport that I too love,” Tracey said. “To be able to share this same sentiment with my daughter is even more poetic.”
Tracey Hartman said coaching her own daughter has come with its share of challenges.
“Hannah and I recognize the challenge and find strength in knowing that we have the same end goal,” Tracey said. “Hannah takes pride in the idea of team and goes the extra mile to facilitate team bonding initiatives. She displays extreme school spirit and leads the way for our team connecting to whatever theme may take place during spirit weeks or various sporting events. She continues to develop her leadership skills while working in tandem with the other seniors/captains.”
From a competition standpoint, Hannah contributes as a back spot in the Blue Devil routine.
“She has excellent motions and she can command attention with her voice, showmanship, and use of props,” Tracey said. “A highlight of Hannah's time with LHS Cheer was witnessing her team win the FALL 2023 State Title. Hannah has also been an athletic all-star freshman, sophomore, and junior year and continues to meet high academic standards as a full time dual enrollment student.”
Hannah started cheering in the first grade, before trying out some other sports before eventually finding her way back to cheerleading for the winter season of her freshman year.
“I was born into it,” Hannah said. “I was never forced to do cheer, but I fell in love with it from the beginning. I grew up thinking these girls were so cool! They could do flips, run across a mat, and look so gorgeous while working so hard to put the routine together.”
“I like the performance of it all and the spirit/support that you get to show your team,” Hannah added. “The whole thing requires a team effort to succeed. It feels so rewarding to know that I’ve been part of this team from the start of us competing in the Game Day Division. I feel like I’ve gotten to see all my teammates grow in so many ways and they’ve helped me grow in return.”
As for being coached by her mom, Hannah said she has learned pretty much everything from her coach.
“Mrs. Hartman has taught me that there’s nothing wrong with asking for help,” Hannah said. “She’s also helped me grow so much as a leader on this team to be a good role model and hard worker.”
After graduation, Hannah hopes to continue cheering at the college level.
“I would love to continue cheering,” Hannah said. “I believe that you can learn more from different coaches and while my mom will always be my favorite, I’m excited to continue growing and begin growing more as a team again in college.”
Cheering isn’t the only plan Hannah has for after high school.
“I want to continue singing and songwriting, even if it’s not what I go to school for,” Hannah said. “I love being able to express my feelings in a way that others feel they can relate to and feel less alone.”
At LHS, Hannah has been a cast member in the high school theatre programs since her freshman year. She is also a member of the National Honor Society and a participant on the LHS Math Team.
“My favorite class was Theatre Arts 1 because I got to write scripts and be super creative with it,” Hannah said. “I love storytelling and being able to tell the story of a perspective other than my own is so fascinating to me.”
“My favorite teachers were Mrs. Spylios and Ms. McAuliffe because not only did they give me a safe space when I was struggling but they also pushed me to be my best self and use the things I’m already good at to grow in other aspects of the curriculum.”
Hannah stays busy outside of school as well.
“I sing at various open mic nights and other events,” Hannah said. “In my free time I’m always singing, playing piano and songwriting. Cheer is always on my mind! Whether it’s what glitter we will wear for the next football game or ways we can better stretch before practice or our next team bonding event.”
