NARROWS, Va. – Giles and Narrows collected donations for Alexius, the Narrows cheerleader battling cancer, and raised $9,628.74.
In one football community in the New River Valley, two rival teams are teaming up to help a girl in need.
Alexius Dawson, 14, is a freshman at Narrows High School and the JV cheerleading captain.
"It's just, like, my favorite thing to do," Alexius said.
Behind her smile, Alexius is hiding her pain. She took a bad tumble a couple of years ago and her hip never fully recovered.
CLICK HERE TO VISIT ALEXIUS' GOFUNDME PAGE
"My hip would hurt constantly, like really bad," Alexius said.
The pain got so bad, she went back to the doctor. After days of tests, last week she found out she has osteosarcoma, a rare type of bone cancer. There's a tumor the size of a man's fist on her right hip pressing into a nerve.
"It was kind of like a shock," Alexius said. "I didn't really think it was something serious like that."
Alexius' mom, Nikki Horton, is still stunned.
"I just hurt. No parent wants to hear that their child has cancer. No parent wants to see their child struggle," Horton.
The news of Alexius' diagnosis spread quickly throughout the community. When both schools heard, they put aside their differences to rally behind her. Leading up to Friday night's big game, students at both schools wore "#AlexisStrong" T-shirts and yellow ribbons. Giles even painted a yellow ribbon on the school's football field.
Giles and Narrows are raising money for Alexius' medical bills, holding fundraisers and collecting donations in helmets before the game.
Every player wore a sticker on their helmet of a yellow and red ribbon with Alexius' name on it.
Red represents Giles, while yellow represents Narrows and bone cancer.
"Football is just a game," said Ty Lowery, a Giles High School varsity football captain. "We're thinking of her and we appreciate all of her bravery."
"It's just really great seeing two rival communities being able to rally around one person," said Dustin Wiley, a Narrows High School varsity football captain.
Next week, Alexius goes back to the doctor to see if the cancer has spread. She'll have to go through chemo and have surgery to remove the tumor. Until then, she's leaning on her community for strength.
"The love that they have for her, it's amazing," Horton said.
"It's hard," Alexius said. "But I told them just to stay strong."