Weedsport, Auburn squads each compete

By Debbie Pinckney

Friday, February 18, 2005 11:26 PM EST

Competitions have been happening all over the Central New York area and I have some results for your reading pleasure.
The Weedsport varsity cheerleaders traveled to the Valentine Classic in Oswego last weekend. They competed in the non-tumbling division against 11 squads.

This was their second venture at the competitive level and they placed sixth, General Brown placed first, followed by Whitesboro. Coach Kara Maher tells me there were some major changes due to the loss of eligible cheerleaders.

One thing people need to understand about cheerleading, is that it is a team sport and it's not like having a bench of eligible players to substitute as needed. Every cheerleader has a specific task, be it a base, flyer, spotter, or tumbler. The roles are not easy to fill when someone cannot perform.

I have also been told the St. Mary's CYO squads went to this same competition and placed first in their divisions with an adjudicated score, great job ladies.

As an aside, the CYO Closing Day will be held Sunday, March 13 at the Auburn High School gymnasium. Besides the regular playoff games, there will be a cheerleading exhibition for your entertainment. Participants include St. Alphonsus, St. Francis, St. Mary's, Sacred Heart, and a combined squad of mascots and instructional level girls from Holy Family and St. Hyacinths.

Cheerleading coordinator Mary Ann Balloni asks for a lot of crowd participation to cheer these young ladies on. Although the days of CYO competition are gone due to liability issues, the squads have been practicing diligently, cheering for the games on the weekends and they need their time to shine.

Auburn High competed in the CNY Classic in Utica two weeks ago, varsity placed first and JV placed second.

The second competition, in Oswego, varsity placed second and JV placed fourth. The stunt group of Victoria Calarco, Alyssa Law, Emily Curtin, Hannah Bennett, and Amanda Chalupnicki placed first.

Coach Ashley Festa tells me the season is over and she will be losing 10 seniors to graduation. But the cycle continues as there are 15 JV cheerleaders ready to move up. Ashley was happy with the season; she had some great tumbling, senior Jessica Pirkaski made all-American. Congrats to all on a great season.

Union Springs traveled to their IAC Championship competition last week. The squad placed second behind Groton. Head coach, Nikki Sliwka tells me she will only be losing one cheerleader to graduation, Sheena Ware.

She is very proud of the squad, the ladies, and lone man, Eddie Gonzales, worked hard, performed well and she can't wait for next year.

That's all the news I have for now, I am hoping to hear from other local schools with information on their competitions, but the lines of communication are running slow.

Please contact me via The Citizen, I will write about your squads if you give me the information. This column is for you, and we want to share all the news we can with our readers.

Talk Later.

Pinckney, a Southern Springs

cheerleading coach, is The Citizen's cheerleading columnist. She can be reached at citizensports@lee.net

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