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Spirit teams shine at national championships
2:47 p.m., Jan. 23, 2007--UD's spirit teams made an impressive showing in the 2007 United Cheerleading Association and Universal Dance Association national championships held at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla., Jan. 14-17. The UD cheerleading team brought home a national title and the dance team a second-place finish. At this year's event, the UD cheerleading team's Amanda Cassarino, a junior from Forked River, N.J., and Gregory Gilbert, a senior from Cape May, N.J., won a national title by taking first place in the coed partner stunt category, opening their performance with a series of stunts so difficult that it had the audience cheering throughout. Stunt partners Julie Weiss, a freshman from Hatfield, Pa., and Bill Mayo, a graduate student from Springfield, Pa., came in ninth and Gillian Guadagnino, a sophomore from Brooklyn, and Seth Riblett, a junior from Newark, took 12th place. The team came in second in Division 1 team competition. Andy Brown, head cheerleading coach, said, he is especially proud of his team because they had to work very hard this year because almost half are new. “This accomplishment reflects countless hours of practice and conditioning in and out of the gym. This group of athletes, through perspiration and pain, became more than a team over the past few months, they became a family,” he said. UD's dance team won second place in the Division 1 Hip-Hop category and took fourth place in Division 1 Jazz. Nicole K. Daliessio-Zehnder, dance team coach, said she is pleased with her team's finishes. “Only five out of 14 dance team members had competed nationally. The routines were performed perfectly. There were a lot of talented teams competing against us. I have to admit that it is a true reward to be in the top four in the nation in both the hip-hop and jazz categories. This proves that the University of Delaware Dance Team is one of the best overall and most versatile teams in the collegiate world today,” she said. YoUDee came in seventh in the mascot competition. Sharon Harris, assistant director of public relations and mascot coordinator, said she is proud of the UD mascot team's showing. “There were approximately 36 mascot video entries, and only the top 10 mascots were invited to perform,” Harris said. "Along with the video, the team worked countless hours putting together the skit YoUDee performed, which included making props and selecting music to entertain the crowd. And, YoUDee did just that and got great crowd response. The team members already are looking forward to entering next year's national competition.” The United Cheerleading Association and Universal Dance Association's competition, one of the most prestigious national spirit championships in the country, is shown on ESPN and ESPN2 to more than 90 million homes each year. More than 22,000 cheerleaders and 5,500 dancers compete to get to the national competition. Photo by Kathy F. Atkinson |
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