Cal Poly looks for its second national title at the 2025 College STUNT National Championships in Nashville, Tennessee.
Five other teams will also compete from April 25-27, including Oklahoma State, Michigan State, Alma, Arizona State and Central Michigan.
The team previously won a national title in 2023, coming in as the No. 3 seed. They beat No. 1 Oklahoma State twice, with both matchups going to overtime. They defeated the Cowgirls 17-16 in the semifinals before taking them down 18-17 in the finals.
Cal Poly STUNT is led by Annette Laron-Pickett, who is in her 18th year at the helm. She earned National Coach of the Year twice, most recently in 2023.
The NCAA approved stunt as an emerging sport in 2023. It is recognized as a sport and allows for additional opportunities for female student-athletes, according to stuntthesport.org.
Each match is a head-to-head game, consisting of four quarters that each encompass a different aspect of the competition. Judges score each routine for both teams and award points based on technique, difficulty and execution.
Matches start with partner stunts, then pyramids and tosses. The third quarter contains jumps and tumbling and the fourth is a team routine.
Senior and captain Sydney Sherman is excited to compete in her final competition of her Cal Poly career. Although Cal Poly STUNT has connections to the cheerleading team, the matches
“It’s not as much of a performance sport, so we don’t have to be smiling the whole time,” Sherman said. “We work super hard to showcase these routines, it takes many, many hours of practice,” Sherman said.
While Cal Poly STUNT receives institutional backing from the university, it is not a varsity sport at Cal Poly.
Athletes must get into Cal Poly on their own merit before trying out for the team and the university cannot give out scholarships.
