By Bob Nuse, Sports Editor
The road to nationals started early for the Montgomery High School dance team.
The Cougars started by qualifying at a camp in the summer and followed that with more than four months of training to prepare for the 2015 National Dance Championships, which were held in Orlando from Jan. 31 to Feb. 1.
”The girls put in a lot of time and effort and it would not work without their commitment,” Montgomery coach Christine Rizzo said. “We had to qualify in order to be able to attend. UDA is one of largest varsity brands and they host summer camps. You have to attend a summer camp and bring a routine with you. That is what they call your ‘home routine.’ You have to receive a trophy for that in order to qualify. We went to an elite camp at Monmouth University to qualify.”
This is the Cougars’ third year with competitive team and in their first appearance at nationals they finished seventh in the Large Jazz Division. It was quite an accomplishment for a program that has come together quickly in the last three years.
”There had been a couple of groups of students that had tried in years past but it hadn’t taken off,” Rizzo said. “A couple of the mothers approached (athletic director) Tony Maselli and had the right background and information to start a competitive program. I was brought in to coach.
”The girls have been great. I do try to teach them that every performance counts. The performances we do at football games and pep rallies are different than the routines we do at competitions. At the games those are more high energy, shorter routines than the competitive ones. Those are longer and more intricate and require a lot more difficulty and practice.”
The team prepared all fall and into the winter for its trip to nationals. The 20-member team competed in the Large Jazz Division, which was for teams of 15 or more members.
The team captains were Chloe Snyder and Caroline McCorry, while the co-captains were Karina O’Gara and Angela Pace, The rest of the roster consists of Clare Brassil, Hannah Ableman, Alyssa Dedrick, Cassandra DeLaCruz, Vivian Hu, Nikki Duran, Kelsey Hirsch, Katie Rose Davis, Sara Howard, Anna Fredeen, Meghan Khanna, Sophia Demato, Melanie Lavake, Andie Ajello, Chelsea Beckelman and Hannah Csontos.
”It was exciting to go for the time and have the team do so well,” Rizzo said. “The girls worked hard.”
