Old Bridge Rams cheerleaders win national competition First team from the Central Jersey Conference to win the national title

Staff Writer

By natalie m. vena

Old Bridge Rams cheerleaders win national competition
First team from the Central Jersey Conference to win the national title

OLD BRIDGE — The Old Bridge Rams, PeeWee and Junior PeeWee cheerleading squads captured first and fourth places respectively at the "Pop Warner Super Bowl Cheerleading Championships" held at the Wide World of Sports in Walt Disney World, Fla., on Dec. 7.

The 2000 Old Bridge Rams PeeWee Cheerleaders have bragging rights as they are now national champions. This is the first time that a team from the Central Jersey Conference won the national title.

Old Bridge Rams coach Maria Szaraz was exuberant after her squad nailed their routine. "We’ve been great all year. But today, the girls were exceptionally great and against some tough competition," she said. "It’s all part of the puzzle — hard work, teamwork, getting along, discipline and little bit of good old Lady Luck."

The Old Bridge Rams represented the Eastern Region — New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Delaware — at the nationals. They competed against the top teams from the other seven regions across the country. In total, there are about 2,000 teams at each level, nationwide. Through local, state and regional elimination competitions, the top 15 teams in the country competed at the nationals.

The Junior PeeWee team consists of 26 girls between the ages of 9 and 10. Under the guidance of their coach, Christine Lynch, the squad began working hard in August for the chance to go to the nationals in Florida. Their hard work and dedication paid off as they won the right to compete at the "Pop Warner Super Bowl Cheerleading Championships." The competition was difficult, but the squad held on to fourth place. The PeeWee team consist of 27 girls ages 11 and 12. Many of the girls on the current squad competed in the nationals two years ago and won third place when they were part of the Junior PeeWees. Since then, they have been striving to go back and take the title, according to Paul Taguer, league secretary.

Both cheerleading squads needed to raise $30,000 to pay for the trip to the nationals. The Old Bridge Township Council gave $6,000 to the cheerleaders — $3,000 for each team. Many local businesses also donated money to fund the trip.

Pop Warner Little Scholars is the only national youth football and cheerleading/dance organization in the United States. The annual event attracted approximately 12,000 competitors, family and friends to its 2000 National Championships at the Disney sports complex. The 2000 Pop Warner Super Bowl celebrated the organization’s 71st anniversary year from Dec. 3 to 9.

"It’s the best single place for our young competitors, parents, brothers, sisters and neighbors to get together and have fun," said Pop Warner’s executive director Jon Butler. "The competition is exciting — the adrenaline is pumping. When it’s all done, our kids and families will have had a great experience together that they’ll never forget."

More than 350,000 kids competed in local leagues, with winning football teams and cheer/dance squads battling through local and regional championships to earn their place at the Pop Warner Super Bowl.

Pop Warner Little Scholars is a nonprofit organization that attracts boys and girls, ages 5 to 15, to build leadership and teamwork skills as they compete in flag and tackle football, cheerleading and dance programs across the United States, Mexico, Canada, Japan and, most recently, Russia.