A coach was murdered. A cheerleading troupe formed to honor her. Now they’re headed to the nationals. – NJ.com

Hay, 27, and Makeda O’Neal, 28, another Candy’s Elite owner and coach, met around middle school when they both cheered for the North Ward Scorpions, a Pop Warner team in Newark. They didn’t find many chances to develop their love for the sport until they met Candy McLean, a popular coach whose mission was to grow cheerleading in Essex County.

McLean instantly connected with Hay and O’Neal, serving as their coach, confidant, friend and mother figure. Over late nights in Branch Brook Park lounging after practice, or during sleepovers at McLean’s house, Hay and O’Neal would talk about their deepest secrets and McLean would come up with the perfect advice to help their young lives make sense. 

“She just had a huge heart,” Hay said.

McLean encouraged them to push boundaries and try complex dance routines never seen before in Newark — imploring Hay and O’Neal to watch the hit MTV show “America’s Best Dance Crew” and the movie “Drumline” to mimic the most exotic routines. Eventually, McLean welcomed them to her coaching staff.

“She told me anything I wanted to do, I could do,” Hay said. “She would tell me, ‘When I retire from cheerleading, this is going to be yours. You’re going to do great things with the program. I know it, I believe in you.’”

In September 2008, McLean, 40, was shot to death, along with her 18-year-old daughter, Talia McLean; her niece, Zakiyyah Jones, also 18; and her boyfriend’s daughter, 13-year-old Latrisha Carruthers-Fields. They were killed inside McLean’s Irvington home by a ranking Bloods gang member who robbed the house believing it was a drug location, according to reports.

Latrisha was the daughter of Michael Fields, an imprisoned drug dealer and Candy McLean’s boyfriend. Rolando “Ratman” Terrell was charged with the murders and sentenced in 2012 to life in prison plus 300 years.

The violence shocked the community and left a gaping void in Newark’s cheer scene. At the time of McLean’s killing, Hay and O’Neal were still in high school. So another assistant coach, Tosha Downey-Plant, took over the program full-time while Hay and O’Neal helped out.