The most recent and prestigious of Radford’s competitive cheerleading championship banners hangs alongside the Rams’ 1981 Prep Bowl banner in James Alegre Gym.

Members of the four-time defending state champions in the medium division (10 or fewer team members) can always look up at the two flags heralding their impressive double dip at last year’s National Cheerleading Association championships in Dallas. Radford brought home last year’s NCA grand national championship title after winning the coed division and recording the competition’s highest score to top more than 200 squads. But this season, the ever-present reminders of Radford’s tradition of excellence have loomed large over a young team.

Perhaps feeling the pressure, the host Rams had a major bobble in their opening sequence at the OIA championships on Saturday, opening the way for perennial contender Moanalua to capture the OIA title. It was the first time since the 2005-06 season that a team other than the Rams won the OIA crown.

Na Menehune wowed the crowd with a dynamic, clean routine to top the 12-team field with 308.5 points. Mililani’s 15-member squad turned in a tight, solid performance to place second with 304 points and Radford posted 301.5 points to take third.

"A lot of the teams had bobbles, so as long as we sold the routine and hit everything, we were gonna win it," said first-year Moanalua coach Jennifer Wilson.

As Na Menehune celebrated, Radford coach Bo Frank was philosophical.

"You gotta win some, you gotta lose some," he said. "It’s a good lesson."

"I told (the team) this week, we’re gonna go for it. We’re gonna leave it on the floor. If we make a mistake, we’re not gonna change our (degree) of difficulty just because we’re young or whatever."

As the Rams try to refocus for the Zippy’s/HHSAA Cheerleading Championships at the Stan Sheriff Center on Sunday, Frank can remind them about last year’s state championship squad that overcame a big early break to win.

"That (mistake) could have been devastating to the point where they didn’t put it back up and they hang their head," he said. "Everything after that could have (fallen), too."

Both Radford and ILH champion Kamehameha, the three-time defending state titlist in the large division (11 to 18 members), will compete on the mainland following the state meet. Radford will return to the NCA championships Jan. 8-9, while Kamehameha, winner of five national championships, will defend its Division I varsity medium title at the National High School Cheerleading Championships on Feb. 12-13 at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla.

Despite his team’s relative youth, Frank hasn’t backed off high-risk, high-reward routines, instead kicking up the degree of difficulty. But he has had to help the Rams’ three sophomores and two freshmen handle the burdens that come with Radford’s winning ways.

"It’s definitely a rebuilding year," said Frank, now in his 11th season at Radford. "But we have the same expectations."

"(This year’s team) was feeling a tremendous amount of pressure," he said. "Five states in a row, defending grand national champions, it was just (weighing) really heavy on them. So I told them, ‘This is a new team. … We just have to go out and make a new name for ourself.’"

A former all-state point guard at Moanalua, Frank points to his two freshman front bases, Alyssa Antonio and Maila Moore, to back his contention that cheerleading is the "ultimate team sport."

"Without them, none of our stuff would hit," he said.

Antonio and Moore say they’ve benefited from Frank’s mental training.

"Before I go on, I close my eyes and say, ‘Fear is for the weak,’" said Antonio. "It’s kinda like my own motivation saying that you shouldn’t have fear because it holds you back from doing a lot of things."