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YEATESVILLE, N.C. — Northside High School senior Trinity O’Neal is always a cheerleader. She’s now also a trailblazer.

O’Neal is believed to be the first cheerleader from the school to take her talents to the college level. A ceremony was held in her honor last Friday as she declared her intention to cheer for Barton College.

“Well, to me, it’s a very big deal personally, not to like prove it to anybody else, but I’m proving it to myself that it’s definitely possible, especially being the first person in history to sign at the collegiate level for cheer here,” O’Neal said. “Cheer doesn’t really get the respect it deserves, so I think it shows me and my team and other girls that cheer that it’s possible.

“From winning states, you know placing at every competition with my team, I think it gives us all the confidence, like me signing gives everyone the confidence that, you know, you come from Pinetown and you’re still able to sign at the collegiate level.”

O’Neal said there was a time during her senior year when she figured being a cheerleader was going to end. She even had plans to move to Greenville and go to Pitt Community College to be a respiratory therapist. Now, she will be moving to Wilson in August, where she will study to be a social worker.

“After high school and I thought it was over and then I got the text message that the (Barton) coach, she wanted me to come tour, and as soon as I visited, it felt like the place I was supposed to be,” O’Neal said. “So yeah, I was ready to settle, I was ready to live in Greenville and just go to Pitt, and as soon as I stepped foot on the campus at Barton, it really did feel like home.”

She said she’ll be busy learning routines and getting ready to make the jump to the college level. It won’t be too long before Aug. 9 is here, which is the move-in day for students at Barton.

The cheerleaders will perform at every home game and at almost all the away games. O’Neal said she was certain they would not travel to the West Alabama game, which is on Sept. 20 in Livingston, Ala. Otherwise, it’ll be a full and busy season.

“Start learning most of the material and things like that, and she hasn’t mentioned anything specifically about like practices and things like that,” O’Neal said. “But I know we will have some and then we’ll get a lot of information sent to us through our emails, like videos and the certain dances and cheers that we need to learn.”

Northside cheer coach Jackie Small said it’s an exciting time for O’Neal and the program to see the senior take the next step in her cheer career, something the 18-year-old has been doing since she was 5.

“She’s always been a phenomenal cheerleader, and I was lucky enough to be able to coach her this season,” Small said. “Barton had noticed her off of a photo of one of her stunts last year, and it was pretty amazing to just see the progression of them talking to her. I had convinced her just to give it a shot, go visit the school, go visit with her family, and just see how she felt, meet the coaches, meet the girls, and just see if she felt like that was a second home.

“We also talked about how big of an accomplishment it was that she could be the first cheerleader ever from Northside to be able to earn a scholarship for cheer. She’s worked at it for four years, she worked at it before that, and she’s always been local to this area. Just to see her prosper and then be offered a scholarship for cheer is wonderful.”