When it comes to twins, people often think about twin telepathy and if such a phenomenon is actually real. For twins juniors Mariana and Laura Camacho Cubillos, twin telepathy occurred when they both tore their ACLs at the same time.
Juniors Mariana and Laura Camacho Cubillos have been doing twin things since they can remember. From dressing up in matching outfits to trick people into believing that they were the other twin, and of course, twin telepathy. “I guess in a way there is twin telepathy because there have been moments where I’d be singing a song in my head and Mariana would sing that exact same part out loud,” said Laura, the older of the twins by just a few minutes.
Since seven years old, Laura and Mariana have been cheering. Both participate in three sports, cheer in the fall, gymnastics in the winter, and soccer in the spring. “My favorite memory is winning Nationals for my rec cheer team in 2021,” said Mariana. “I loved the environment and the team we had that year.” Both of the twins have been on the Potomac Falls cheer team since their freshman year and are definitely coming back next year. “I hope to become the cheer captain next season and I want to pursue cheer in college and cheer for football games,” said Laura.
In January of 2023, Mariana tore her ACL doing a flip in her team routine for cheer. “I never got any actual pain that insinuates that I had an ACL tear.” Therefore, she continued playing her other sports. It wasn’t until September that she got hurt again at a soccer game. At the same time, her twin Laura, got injured during that same soccer game. “It’s pretty surreal since we both got hurt at the same game,” said Mariana who has a grade two meniscus tear along making her injury harder to recover from. “I was more focused on her than my own injury because I knew it would be more severe than mine. I didn’t realize until later that we would be going through this together, using crutches, taking a break from sports,” said Laura.
Despite the injuries that both twins are going through, that does not prevent them from participating in cheer. “I would go to all the practices because I knew it not only affected me, but it did affect the others. I would help my teammates teach my routine to the person that was substituting for me,” said Laura. “I go to all of their competitions and help out with minor things, like holding signs and cheering them on.”
With the twins not being able to participate in their regular cheer practices, the atmosphere has definitely changed. “ It was hard to lose them in our routine, because they contribute so much whether it be stunting, cheering or tumbling, they’re really good cheerleaders and we could use them on our team,” said one of the cheer captains, senior Lauren Ignazzitto. “We had to move things around and teach new people their routines. I know they are strong girls and will get through this and come back next year.”
The twins are now in recovery after their successful surgery and are planning on coming back to the team next season.