Cheerleaders and dance team take top honors

4:29 p.m., Sept. 12, 2005--UD’s cheerleading and dance squads won first place in two major competitions during Universal Cheerleaders Association 2005 College Spirit Camps, held Aug. 10-Aug. 13, at the University of Scranton.

The cheerleaders competed in Division 1 fight song, cheer and
sideline against five other teams. They finished first in fight song, second in cheer and fourth in sideline.

UD dancers placed first in home routine and second in fight song in a field of 10 other teams. Dancers also were awarded a superior trophy for overall excellence.

Both the cheerleaders and dance team received the "Most Collegiate" award, given to the schools that best represent what college cheerleaders and dancers should be.

Joe Mackley, head cheerleading coach, said he is pleased with the squads first- and second-place showings, but added that they need to work harder on sideline routines. He said “the most important award for us coming out of camp is the Most Collegiate. It reinforces that we are doing things the right way here at Delaware, projecting a clean-cut, all-American image.”

Dance team coach Nicole Daliessio said she was impressed with her team’s performance. “Half of our team consists of rookies. Even so, they came together as a unit and succeeded!”

The dance team’s summer camp showing comes only months after the team won the 2005 National Hip-Hop Championship with a routine choreographed by Alyssa Disabatino, a senior in the College of Human Services, Education and Public Policy, and Lauren Steffens, a senior in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Article by Barbara Garrison
Photos by Kathy F. Atkinson

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