The Little Falcons learn drills and routines from the high school pom team members inside the McDowell Mountain Elementary School gym. (Independent Newsmedia/George Zeliff)

The Fountain Hills High School pom team and the Little Falcons cheer together at the home football game on Friday, Sept. 29. (Independent Newsmedia/George Zeliff)

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In 2000, Kevin Wilkinson was put in a pressured situation and came out of it a school record holder.

He kicked a 47-yard field goal for his high school in Indiana, and 23 years later, Wilkinson kicked a field goal as part of halftime festivities on Little Falcons night, Friday, Sept. 29.

Wilkinson is the McDowell Mountain Elementary School (MMES) principal, and Little Falcons night was created to raise school spirit in the district. The young students received free entry to the game, and they were shown a taste of what awaits them in high school.

Wilkinson took a few attempts, but finally his kick sailed cleanly through the goal posts. Afterwards, every elementary student in attendance received a mini football and ice cream sandwich, courtesy of the Fountain Hills Athletic Booster Club.

The elementary students watched Wilkinson kick from the sidelines, and some were involved in the Friday night light activities themselves. More than 30 girls from kindergarten to fifth grade practiced routines with the high school pom team a few days before the game, and then they cheered alongside the high schoolers at the football game.

Gilian Levin, a Fountain Hills alumni and MMES kindergarten teacher, took over the high school pom team this year. She did Little Falcons night as a kid and helped bring it back this year. The elementary school girls spent a few hours learning cheers the Wednesday before the game, but Levin is thinking of returning to a longer, weekend camp for cheerleading based on the turnout this year.

“I cheered on the track, and I just remember being like, ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t wait to be in high school and do this,’” Levin said. “That memory is so vivid. I think it just makes them excited for what they can do.”