Story posted Friday, December 11, 2009
MP Cheerleaders Shine At State
By DWIGHT ESAU Journal Sports
It's been a very special year for the Mt. Prospect Cheerleading Club.
The club's varsity and JV competition teams not only did their thing at Mt. Prospect youth football games this fall, but they soared to 4th and 3rd place, respectively, in statewide competition sponsored by the Illinois Recreational Cheerleading Association (IRCA).
The club's goal annually is to qualify teams to compete in the IRCA's state finals. In 2009, for the first time, they met that goal. The state finals were held on Dec. 5-6 this year at Northern Illinois University. Hundreds of cheerleading squads of third-through-eighth graders throughout the state came together to prove who was best. The Mt. Prospect teams proved that they were better than almost all of them.
"It started out as all new seasons do, with coaches and moms organizing squads and girls getting to know one another," said Ron Godby, who operates the club's website and is its official photographer. "Then came practices and cheering at football games for the Mt. Prospect Park District Football League. The girls cheered in the sun and rain, in heat and freezing temperatures. They became close friends and developed good camaraderie and counted on one another, not just to catch each other in stunts, but support each other through nerve-racking competitions."
The competition prep squad, with girls in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades, competed in a Spirit Spectacular, where they won third place. They were coached by Chrissy Haskell, Sarah Knight, and Mary Godby.
The competition JV squad of 6th and 7th graders competed in five qualifying events. While they placed in each event, they could not seem to capture that first-place award that would give them an automatic bid to the IRCA state championship tournament.
"The struggle caused the girls to bond in a way that made them more like sisters," Godby said. The JVers entered a qualifying round the morning of the state finals and scored well. They went on to place second in the next round, and finished the season by winning third place in the state for the highest-ever finish by a Mt. Prospect squad.
Coached by Randi Lehnert and Jess Wenk, the JV squad included Lauren Barr, Sarah Connor, Kelly Cubberly, Hannah Gallo, Cristina Garcia, Clarissa Genovese, Skyler Kociuba, Jordan Mims, Michaela Morris, Alexandra Nowak, Katie Porwit, Angela Roman, Melanie Ronayne, Alexis Salvadore, Magdalena Schneider Gabriell Stolton Jackie Thorne, and Caroline Trefelner.
The varsity squad of 7th and 8th graders won two events during the fall that qualified them for the statefinals automatically.
"The girls ovecame injuries, episodes of the H1N1 virus, and a hectic schedule," Godby said. "They were the hardest-working and most dedicated cheerleaders to ever step on a gym floor or football field."
This team won fourth at state and ended the year with the most competition wins in the history of the club. This fall, they finished first twice, second six times, and third three times.
Coached by Jelena Stanojevic and Elaina Gallachio, the varsity team included Lisa Baniak, Ashley Bojczuk, Cristina Demonte, Brianna Eggebrecht, Alyssa Friend, Mary Godby, Kelly Ann Haines, Nicole Huff, Katie Janowiak, Lexi Kalish, Hailey Kaul, Iryna Lekhiv, Anna-Maria Niezgoda, Alyssa Pearson, Jadyn Vella, Jessica Werker, and Lauren Zonsius.
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