By JESSICA HARDING
Staff Writer
SAYREVILLE — On Dec. 5, cheerleaders from two divisions took the mat at the Pop Warner National Cheer and Dance Championship in Disney World.
The Sayreville Leprechauns Junior Varsity team brought home a first-place trophy and a national championship by performing a near-perfect routine.
The cheerleaders are Jessica Redding, Christa Winkler, Haley Redding, Emily Jurkiewicz, Justine Denby, Jamie McIntosh, Zarah Williams, Dorian Kaiser, Caroline Koniarska, Sara Arter, Jayde Gildea, Amanda Mozden, Alison Mclaughlin, Kaitlyn Fritz, Morgan Brennan, Madison Miller and Cameran Kasperan.
The team’s leadership was led by the head coach, Krystle Park, and the cheer director, Sonya Pearson. Also contributing were the coaches, Karen Sissick Levenson and Kaitlyn Stefaniuk and the junior coaches, Nicole Leonard and Rosie Holzapfel.
The team’s road to the Nationals started out with a second-place showing at the Central Jersey Pop Warner Cheer Competition.
Then, the girls won first at the New Jersey State Competition and Eastern Regional Championship. Those efforts brought them to this final moment at the ESPN Wide World of Sports.
Park has believed in the girls since the beginning.
“The last thing I said to the girls before their performance at Nationals was to go out there and leave their hearts out on that mat and no matter what the judges said, as long as they had no regrets, they were winners in our hearts. This was their time to shine and their time to show the nation just how amazing they are.”
The Sayreville Leprechauns Pee Wee team placed second at the competition.
This team placed first at both the Central Jersey Pop Warner Cheer Competition and the Eastern Regional Championship. These wins brought them to the Nationals.
The cheerleaders are Mya Jackson, Kylie Taeschler, Jayden Mann, Megan Zsorey, Jasmine Gonzalez, Jaden Kaiser, Heather Pechulis, Kelley French, Christina Fritz, Caitlin Berecsky and Crystal Margotta.
The girls were led by the head coach, Brianne Chaney, the coaches, Jessica Crimmins and Kaitlin Stefaniuk, and the junior coaches, Jen Pajak and Jen Tamburri.
Chaney recognized how hard the girls worked.
“I could not be more proud of the girls and how successful of a season they had. They worked so hard and it truly showed at Nationals. I felt that it was the best routine they performed all season. They did everything my coaches and I asked of them.”