Payton Washington, Woodlands Elite Cheer Athlete Injured In A Shooting Incident

Several athletes from Woodlands Elite were the victims of a random, senseless crime one night during a normal carpool drop-off in Austin, Texas.

After being seriously wounded in a gunshot overnight on Tuesday, a well-known Woodlands Elite General Athlete will not compete at the upcoming world tournament.

After a man fired several shots at their vehicle, Woodlands Elite Cheer member Payton Washington was taken to the hospital. Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr., age 25, has been detained about the incident, according to the Elgin Police Department. At around 12:15 AM, the male opened fire on several athletes from Woodlands Elite.

According to the investigations, two athletes were hit, and one had a non-life-threatening gunshot wound. The second victim, now identified as Payton Washington, was transported by air in serious condition to a local hospital.

Officers were sent to the HEB, which is located at 1080 E. US 290, in response to shots being fired, according to a police department release. The shooting victim placed a second call in the 800 block of SH 95 N while police were already on the site.

These two instances were found to be connected. Information indicates a fight in the HEB parking lot, and several rounds were fired into a car. The vehicle’s two occupants were hit by gunfire. One person received treatment and was later released. The second person had severe injuries and was flown by helicopter to the hospital, where they are still in bad condition.

A long post shared on Facebook remarks:

This weekend is ALL-STAR CHEER WORLDS!!! The best in the world compete for GOLD. Teams from the US and other countries come to see who is the best in the highest divisions of our sport.

My daughter Maya Sharpe who will be competing this weekend with her team, just informed me that a WORLDS team out of Houston – Woodlands Elite – GENERALS  has had a tragedy.

Four of their athletes were driving home in a carpool and had an accident. Some of the athletes are in the hospital in stable condition. One of the athletes was shot.

My heart breaks as a mom. My heart is sad for this team and the entire organization. I cannot imagine preparing for WORLDS and suddenly dealing with this tragedy. It affects so many.

Please join me in prayer that all the athletes recover physically and emotionally.

Comfort and peace for their parents.

Faith and perseverance for GENERALS to take the mat this weekend in honor of their teammates.

While all of our teams are FIERCE competitors, we rally together when the ALL-STAR CHEER COMMUNITY is hit with tragedy.

Thank you for keeping everyone, including all our Athletes and their families traveling this weekend to compete.