Draughn’s Bowman signs with L-R for cheerleading

The 2025-26 school year has been a memorable one for Draughn’s cheerleading team.

Burke County had never had a cheer squad win a North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) state championship prior to this year, but the county has brought home four state titles since January, with the Wildcats claiming three of them.

Two of those championships have been won by Draughn’s varsity team, which finished first in the Small Varsity DII Game Day division during the NCHSAA Cheerleading Invitational on Jan. 9 in Concord before also finishing first in its division during last month’s North Carolina Cheerleading Coaches Association state championships, a remote competition that was originally scheduled to be an in-person event in January before being postponed due to snow.

Senior Madison Bowman is a key member of Draughn’s varsity cheer squad, and she recently reflected on helping the Wildcats win a couple of state titles after signing her letter of intent on Friday, March 20, to continue her cheerleading career at Lenoir-Rhyne University beginning this fall.

“It felt really good,” said Bowman. “It meant a lot to me because we’ve been working really hard. We faced a lot of challenges and adversity against our team, so it felt good to be a part of that and see our work pay off.”

Bowman began participating in cheerleading when she was in Pre-K because she enjoyed going to sporting events and supporting the athletes. She plans to major in nursing at L-R.

“Lenoir-Rhyne felt like home,” said Bowman. “Not being so close that I could live at home, but the environment and the people there, they really made it feel like a good community.”

During her time at Draughn, Bowman acknowledged that she has learned a lot from the likes of former head coach Heather Bost and current head coach Macy Dula, who was previously an assistant before being named head coach last March. Bowman also thanked her family and her boyfriend for the encouragement they have provided.

According to Bowman, “the family and the community that we’ve built with each other” is what stands out about her four years as a part of the Wildcats’ cheer squad. And now she’s set to join a team at L-R that has been coached by Brandi Franklin since 2020.

“I like being out with my friends having fun and making memories,” said Bowman, who added that being a cheerleader has given her the opportunity to make “lifelong friends that I know I’ll still have when I go to college.”