Megawatt power of Pop Warner MW Mitey Mite Cheer team on display nationally
PN /
| 05 Mar 2022 | 10:28
Mitey Mites
Back Row: Coach Jenna Balakitsis, Olivia Nagapen, Valerie Nunez, London Rodriguez, Victoria Olalekan, Mia Balcaceres, Leanne Quevado, Anisa Eanes, Coach Gina Connington. Front Row: Sabrina Connington, Samantha Loughlin, Aubrey Badstein, Mackenzie Cobham, Brianna Henriquez, Aryanna Buckley, Alexis T
Pop Warner Pee Wee Flyers
Multiple awards, regional and national, went to the Pop Warner Monroe Woodbury Mitey Mite Cheer team this year, says Coach Gina Connington.
“We have 15 girls on our Mitey Mite team, and many were new to cheer. But early on, it was easy to see that these girls were going to surprise us and exceed our expectations,” she said.
In the county competition, they took first place, with no deductions, and first in the Empire State Competition, with overall highest score in choreography and overall highest score for all Mitey Mite teams.
“In the Eastern Regional Competition, they took third place out of 18 teams, with zero deductions, which qualified us for Nationals at Universal Studios, in Florida,” said Connington. They placed eighth out of 18 teams with zero deductions again.”
Cheer team members often begin training together at the age of five or six and gradually find their most comfortable place in the pyramids, whether above or below, said Courtney Seabury, the PW junior varsity cheer coach. Often, but not always, the lightest take upper positions, as fearlessness is the final determinant.
Girls on the ground tolerate “bumps and bruises,” as whoever goes up sometimes comes down.
Cheer team members often begin training together at the age of five or six and gradually find their most comfortable place in the pyramids, whether above or below, said Courtney Seabury, the PW junior varsity cheer coach. Often, but not always, the lightest take upper positions, as fearlessness is the final determinant.