The reigning Region 4 4A cheerleading champions have found a new coach. 

Former Ashley Ridge head coach and Airport assistant, Emilee Fidler will take over the program from Jennifer Gooding starting next season, the school announced. Fidler spent 2023 as an assistant for Airport, helping guide the girls through another successful year. 

“I think coaching is just in my blood,” Fidler said. “It’s something that I’m always going to be drawn to. I was really invested in my program that I was leading at our previous school.”

At Ashley Ridge, Fidler’s team won the 2022 5A Region 7 title, and she was named region coach of the year. 

“Emilee’s previous head coaching experiences along with her time with Airport’s team this past season will be wonderful for our program,” Airport Principal Matt Schilit said. “I look forward to seeing what is next for Airport Cheer.  I also want to thank Coach Gooding who has done an amazing job with our program, and I am pleased she is going to continue in a new role with our cheerleading team.”

Fidler plans to bring some of her philosophies from Ashley Ridge to Airport. She wants her teams to show commitment and a desire to buy into the culture she will try to establish. 

“At the core of any program, I think accountability, a proper vision that the athletes and the staff buy into, and then just making the team a fun place to be, I think those are just core fundamentals,” Fidler said. “Regardless of the location, the level of the kids, with those things, I think you can be successful, and you cater those things to the group of kids that you’re working with.”

Unlike at Ashley Ridge, where she was building the program from the ground up, Airport has a history of sustained success when it comes to competitive cheer. This is why coming on as an assistant for the year was beneficial. It allowed Fidler to get familiar with the program before taking over. 

“Fortunately, Coach Gooding and the Airport Cheer Program, they welcomed me with open arms,” Fidler said. “I was able to start working with that group of athletes, and it was just evident that they were Eager to learn. They wanted to improve.”

Fidler has high expectations for the program. She feels the team has the talent and ambition to compete for the 4A state title next year. 

Airport finished 12th in the state finals this year, 44 points behind first place Lucky Beckham. 

“The end goal always is having that medal on your neck and a ring on your hand,” Fidler said. “In terms of goals to accomplish or a vision that I have for small accomplishments as we work towards that goal, I think just instilling a vision and getting everybody on the same page of what we want as a team and how we support each other.”

To bring this vision to life, Fidler said it starts from the top down. She wants the varsity team to buy in and have it trickle down to the athletes in the other levels. 

“My main goal this year is instilling these procedures and processes with varsity to then impact the sub-varsity athletes that’ll later be developing and replacing them,” Fidler said. “I believe in a top-to-bottom program we’ve got to, we have to start at the top here and make sure all the varsity kids are on board and buying into the process.”

Fidler already has plans in place to get the athletes to buy in. 

“We have squad leaders and those leaders will be roughly five people on the team that will essentially draft their squad for the year,” Fidler said. “We’ll do fun challenges that will earn their squad points. Showing up to practice when you’re supposed to earns some points, showing up wearing the proper practice wear, doing the right thing, committing to that process that we’re going to keep circling back to this year, you earn points … I don’t believe in a lot of penalties in cheer and my coaching philosophy in general, because I think you’re  penalized already by the successes that you aren’t able to achieve.”

The team will spend the next couple months beginning the process of installing this concept into their off-season workouts in the spring and summer. Fidler is excited to see how things turn out, and how this new opportunity will benefit not just herself, but her athletes as well. 

“You don’t coach for the money or for the accolades, you coach because you’ve been entrusted with a group of young people who are at a very impressionable chapter in their lives,” Fidler said. “It’s a privilege to play a role in their development and self-confidence, and that’s what keeps me showing up each day. I don’t take this responsibility lightly, and I am motivated and committed to making this a phenomenal season for our athletes, families, and program.”