Cheerleading team wins Division I national title

UD's cheerleading team takes a break in practice Tuesday to show off the new national trophy.

There is a new No. 1 team at UD–the Division I collegiate cheerleading champions. The University of Delaware's award-winning cheerleading team took first place at the Universal Cheerleading, Dance Team and Mascot (UCA) National Championships, held Jan. 11-14 at Disney World in Orlando, Fla.

UD's dance team and mascot YouDee both placed fourth in the national competition.

The first place victory performance by the UD cheerleading squad in the 23-team competition also signaled the end of a decade-long reign by Kentucky's Morehead State University.

"There are no real words to describe how the team feels about this," Coach Joe Mackley said. "We won in a division where a dynasty (in the form of Morehead State University) has won the event for the past 10 years."

UD's cheerleading squad came to the championships ranked third on the basis of a video competition, where overall scores are based on individual and team performances and account for 15 percent of a team's final point tally.

"We put a lot of pressure on the competition by the strength of our presentation and the way our team nailed it," Mackley said. "There were no misses in our performances. It is possible for a team to have no misses with an easy routine, but we did it with an incredibly difficult routine,"

The hardest thing for the UD cheerleading team at the finals was believing they had actually won, he added.

"It took a full 15 minutes to get us off the floor after we were announced as winners," Mackley said. "I don't think we have landed yet."

The UD dance team also turned in a strong performance under difficult circumstances, finishing in fourth place among the nation's top 15 teams.

The dance team had placed first in the opening round on Friday, Jan. 11, but an injury that resulted in the team's having to perform twice in Saturday's competition took its toll on overall team scoring.

"One of our captains who had been dancing with a minor fracture was not able to compete on Saturday because of the injury, and this forced us to make changes in our routine just before we were scheduled for competition," Ann Marie Parisi, dance team coach, said. "The team did fine, but then they were told they had do their routine again, and we ended up being the last team to compete."

Parisi said she was impressed by how well the team performed under adverse conditions

"We kept our composure. I was pleased with the way we handled ourselves," Parisi said. "The team pulled together."

Teamwork also played a big part in the success of Blue Hen mascot YouDee, who took fourth place in the collegiate mascot competition at the Florida championships.

"All the members pulled together to come up with ideas for the routine," Sharon Harris, mascot program coordinator, said. "They also set aside time for practicing and making the props we used in the competition."

Harris also said that special thanks should go to Dave Raymond, HNS '79, CEO of Raymond Entertainment Group, for his involvement with the team.

–Jerry Rhodes

The Blue Hen cheerleaders in action at Delaware Stadium

Photos by DUANE PERRY amd KATHY FLICKINGER