Patty Palmer has taken her Guilderland High School cheerleading team to the national Contest of Champions at Disneyworld 13 times. Never before had she been able to host something of that magnitude until this year.
The first of three New York State Public High School Athletic Association-sanctioned regional cheerleading championships took place Saturday, Feb. 21, at Guilderland, with 80 teams competing in five divisions. NYSPHSAA officially recognized cheerleading as a sport last year, and it’s offering a state championship in 2016. “This year being a sport for the first time and hosting the biggest regional ever known is amazing,” said Palmer. “I didn’t expect 80 teams — 80 varsity teams — from all over the state to come here.” “It’s something we’ve been working towards,” said Colonie coach Ann Grasso-Little. “For New York state to see us as athletes and give them the recognition that they deserve for all the hard work that they do is great.” Guilderland athletic director Regan Johnson said the school was honored when the decision was made to have one of the three regionals contested there. “Patty, being the Section 2 coordinator, got the conversation going,” said Johnson. “Then, Todd Nelson (from NYSPHSAA) talked to us about hosting this.” Though it was considered a regional, the tournament was open to all teams from New York state. Schools from as far away as Buffalo, Rochester and Long Island trekked through the snow to Guilderland to compete for trophies. Colonie was among the five teams to win regional championships. The Lady Raiders claimed the Division I Large title, ahead of runner-up Ballston Spa. “I think (the tournament) shows the athleticism of this sport, and to bring together teams from all over, it means a lot for us to be No. 1,” said Grasso-Little. “It’s our first time coming here and showing the region what we can do,” said senior co-captain Alexandra Summa. “It feels real good to be a champion.” Guilderland used the opportunity to showcase the routine it will perform at the Contest of Champions this weekend in Florida. The routine was full of challenging lifts and moves, not all of which were executed cleanly at the regional event, which led to a fourth-place finish in the co-ed division. While placing fourth at regionals wasn’t what Guilderland wanted, the goal remains to bring back a seventh national title from Disneyworld. “Every performance is kind of a warm-up (for nationals),” said co-captain Taylor Stott. “We try to hit everything perfectly, but we also try to have fun with it.” Next year’s goals will be different for Guilderland, Colonie and every other Section 2 cheerleading team. There will be a Sectional tournament to determine the teams that will compete at the first NYSPHSAA championship in Syracuse. “We start now in the off-season — just keeping the kids working in the weight room and preparing them for the fall,” said Grasso-Little.