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Freeport Cheers Its Way To A Shining Season
FREEPORT, N.Y., March 17, 2008
by Theresa Giusto/Felicia Febrizio |
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The Freeport Cheerleading squads have a lot to shout about this year. All three teams — the varsity and junior varsity (JV) squads at the high school, and the varsity team at Dodd Middle School — have consecutively captured top spots in county and island-wide competitions. |
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Varsity cheerleaders huddle together with their trophy after placing third in the LICCA competition in Sayville. |
"I am truly ecstatic at the teams’ talent," said Varsity Cheerleading Coach Laurie Kolodny. "I am proud of the combined efforts made by team members and coaches to strive to be their best this year."
For the first time in four years, the varsity team competed in the large varsity division due to a talented pool of athletes rising up from the ranks, according to Kolodny. The varsity squad started at sixth place in the Long Island Cheerleading Coaches Association (LICCA) competition at Walt Whitman High School, but quickly moved up to second and fourth place at the Seaford and Half Hollow Hills LICCA competitions, respectively. The varsity team beat out teams from Kellenberg, Plainedge and West Babylon. The squad ended its season by placing third in the Sayville competition. |
The junior varsity team displays its trophy after another successful competition. |
The JV team, coached by Freeport High School cheerleading alumna Danielle Ballard, has conditioned into shape several team members who are new to the sport. With her guidance the team placed third at West Babylon, fourth at Walt Whitman, second in Seaford and fourth at Comsewogue, with a first-place finish at the Rookie Competition at Mt. Sinai High School.
The Dodd Middle School Cheerleading team, coached by Carmen Martinez and Nina Sasso, placed first at the Rookie Competition at Mt. Sinai High School and third at the Smithtown West LICCA competition. |
The Dodd Middle School cheerleaders are all smiles after another big win at Smithtown West |
In January, Freeport hosted the eighth annual LICCA competition at the high school. Thirty-three teams from across Long Island participated in three different competitions.
"Coaches and athletes from all teams enjoyed coming to Freeport because of the spirit and fun brought by all who volunteered their time to help out with the competition," Kolodny said. "Thanks go out to all the people who helped support the program this year. Without them [the teams] wouldn’t be where they are today."
Freeport Public Schools is a diverse, innovative district on Long Island’s South Shore serving about 6,750 students in grades Pre-K through 12. The district and its eight schools take pride in having the region’s only magnet schools of choice, a longstanding and award-winning classroom English/Spanish Dual Language Program, and a high school where students excel in competitions that include the regional Academic Challenge, Odyssey of the Mind and Future Problem Solving International. The district’s New Visions School of Exploration and Discovery has been named a National Blue Ribbon School by the U.S. Department of Education for its high student performance and engaging curriculum.
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