Unorthodox Cheerleader -- Salukis style

Southern Illinois University’s men’s basketball team won the Missouri Valley Conference tournament title Sunday, beating Bradley 59-46 in a game broadcast nationally on CBS.

The win secures for the Salukis an NCAA tournament bid, their fifth in a row.

But the hold-your-breath and pray moment came late in the game when cheerleader Kristi Yamaoka, 18 of Springfield, fell from the top of a lift and landed on her head. She was braced and bound on a stretcher, and a grim mood settled over the Savvis Center crowd, fearing she had been paralyzed in the fall.

Then as the stretcher lifted, Kristi raised her hands, and the crowd cheered in relief. The pep band struck up the school fight song, and Kristi began the hand and arm motions that accompany the song. She was carted off to the hospital still playing to the crowd. It was inspirational and corny, all in one moment.

Of course, the scene has been replayed as a highlight on the sports channels and even the CBS news. Kristi has generally been praised for her courage.

Across the blogosphere, the reaction has been mixed: admiration for her spirit, condemnation in general from those who criticize the foolishness of cheerleading antics, and even satire, in the form of an “Ask the stretcher-bound cheerleader” Q&A on current events. Another blogger dryly observed that at SIU, which has a rich reputation as a party school, frat boys being dropped from such heights is common event.

My own feeling is that cheerleaders have no business doing these big lifts and jumps. Of course, the fact my own cheerleading sister fell in a similar circumstance may color my attitude.

Even so, there’s no denying the athleticism and dedication of cheerleaders at every level. My admiration for the sidelines supporters manifested itself in my gaming. Just check out Unorthodox Cheerleaders, an rpg supplement I did for The Le Games (thelegames.com) last year. It is chock full of ways to make cheerleaders the heroes of your next gaming session.

Maybe I should update it to reflect Kristi’s 15-minutes of fame. What do you think?