Boston Lady Raiders claim Bantam cheer national championship

The Dorchester Elite Eagles Pop Warner 14U football team finally brought home a National Championship this year from Orlando, having won the Division 1 Tomlin championship in Orlando on Thursday, beating Darby (PA) Monarchs, 20-0 – the first national title for the program after several near misses.

The 14U team finished 13-0 on the season, winning two games in Orlando, including the final game against Darby and a first-round win again Next Level Athletics (IL), 31-8, on Dec. 4. The Eagles beat Hartford, 29-8, in the regionals in November to advance to Orlando.

“We got up early 20-0 and we just held on the rest of the way,” said Coach Terry Cousins, president of the Eagles and assistant to long-time Head Coach Tony Hurston. “The Philly team was very aggressive and very physical, which was different than what we saw on film. But we held on. Our program has been down there 18 times without winning it all, so you know how we felt. Four times we played in the championship game and other times finished third or fourth – losing in games that went to double overtime or were a 6-0 final. We always came close, but this time we got it done.”

Captains/leaders of the team include Cyrus Cousins, Christian Simmons, and Jadon Beatty.

The team has been together for many years, Cousins said, and have experienced the ups and downs of winning and losing. He said it was amazing to finally see the kids prevail just as they age out of the Pop Warner ranks – with 14U being the final age group in youth football.

“These kids have been playing since they were 5 years old,” he said. “They have won together, and they have experienced the tough losses together several times. Now they finally get it together there last year and they made it happen. They wanted it, and once we got down there, they were not going to be denied.”

Last year, the 12U Dorchester Eagles brought home third place after a very close, hard-fought, and controversial loss to eventual champion Downington (PA), 14-0.

The Eagles are part of the newly formed Metropolitan Pop Warner football and cheer league, which is headed up by Dameain Mims with urban teams from Boston, Brockton and Providence represented.

He said they were immensely proud of the Eagles for their National Championship and added that the Boston Lady Raiders – based out of Franklin Field – took the Bantam Division Cheer National Championship as well in Orlando.

“We brought 10 teams to the Pop Warner National Championships from our newly formed league,” he said. “Those 10 teams won four national championships, including three in cheerleading and one in football. We have the Dorchester Elite Eagles 14U bringing home the first-ever National Championship in football back to Boston. So, year one for our new league was definitely a good one.”

Metropolitan’s Mt. Hope Cowboys, of Providence, won the other two cheerleading national championships in the league.