Nationals: the End of a Season for Some, the end of an Era for Others

Stephanie Cook

 

    Pop Warner Nationals for football and cheerleading were hosted in Walt Disney World, Florida during the second week of December. Teams from across the country came to the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex to end their season. Three teams from Colonie Pop Warner Cheerleading went down to compete. The Mitey-Mites, a team of six and seven year olds, the Midgets, a team of middle school and freshmen, and the Angels, a team of Special Needs kids.

      I am one of nine coaches of the Midget team. Working together since August, the girls have practiced a routine to perform at Nationals. When we arrived at the Wide World of Sports for practice, it was great. The workers treat all of the teams like professional athletes and force all coaches to oblige by strict rules. There was no use of video or photography during practice, and the officials spent the hour revising our paperwork to ensure that there was no false information. The girls were given twenty minutes on three different mats, where they would jump, tumble, or work on their routine.

        The next day, our team and parents were taken to the ESPN Complex by a Disney bus. The arena had numerous flashing lights and a tunnel created by the outline of Mickey Mouse. This tunnel is where the cheerleaders would run out onto the mat to perform in front of the judges. Each age level performed on a different day, so when we competed the stands were filled with teenagers. Watching our team compete brought out many emotions. The girls did a great job, earning the title of third in the nation. However, this was the last year of Pop Warner for half of them as well as their Junior Coaches. Colonie High School Seniors Missy Vadney, Katie Hutton, Alex Summa, and I have been the Junior Coaches of this team for three years. All of the time and effort we had put into coaching was recognized in this final performance. This realization brought about many tears and smiles.

   When the team arrived back in Albany, many parents waited at the gates of the airport with balloons and cheers. The girls faces lit up after seeing people from the community show appreciation for their accomplishments. The Midgets were shown on ESPN 3 members of Colonie hosted house parties to watch their final performance.