Cheerleaders across Long Island show off skills in first-ever Newsday CheerFest
The David S. Mack Sports Complex at Hofstra University reverberated with the sounds of loud music and cheer on Saturday as more than 70 cheerleading squads across Long Island converged at the first Newsday CheerFest.
“You never get an experience like this. This is a once in a lifetime,” North Babylon sophomore Christiana Santos said. “Everyone’s cheering you on no matter what and it just feels like a whole big cheerleading family.”
The exhibition brought together Nassau, Suffolk and Catholic schools, giving squads a chance to perform their routines in front of crowd of 2,500.
“To compete in this arena is a great experience,” Whitman junior Dylan Bonner said. “Performing in front of a crowd this big and at such a big venue feels amazing.”
While every aspect of a typical competition was there — a judging panel, trophies and high-energy performances — this showcase was about building a sense of community among the squads.
“Even though we don't know everybody here, everyone will support each other no matter what,” North Babylon sophomore Lauren Amanev said. “We always want to build the other teams up because sportsmanship is what we really count on in this sport.”
Cheerleading has proved to be one of the most rapidly growing sports in the state. After years of being on the sidelines, competitive cheerleading was finally recognized as a varsity sport by the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) in 2015. Based upon the NYSPHSAA participation survey, there were 7,238 athletes in competitive cheerleading in 2020, and it grew sizably from there. In the 2021-22 season, there were 10,065 competitive cheerleaders and in 2022-23 there were 11,290.
“Our junior varsity team started off with six girls two seasons ago and now we’re at 21,” West Babylon coach Danielle Comparato. “It’s amazing to see the programs grow within. It brings a strong sense of community for the town."
“Tik Tok is huge,” Comparato added. “All of the girls are influenced by the videos they see. They want to be those girls and it’s so inspiring for the boys too."
For Bonner, who started cheering three years ago when he heard that Garden City was a co-ed squad, attributes wanting to join the team to the friendly atmosphere and social media buzz.
“I played basketball but after watching the Netflix show ‘Cheer,” I really wanted to try it,” Bonner said. “Everybody is so warm and welcoming to each other and it makes going into a situation that may be hectic and scary so much more comforting.”
Bonner is just one of many who joined their school’s cheerleading squad in search of a familial atmosphere.
“All of my friends did it and I thought the bonds they had with their teammates was really nice so I wanted to try it as well,” said Garden City junior Kiera O’Leary, who joined her school’s team as a freshman. “It's such a fun sport because you have a family. If you don't have sisters at home, you're going to find them here."
That can come in handy, because as far as varsity sports go, cheerleading is one of the most demanding.
“I would say these athletes probably work close to five to six hours a day after school and on the weekends,” Levittown Pride youth cheerleading coach AnneMarie Guerra said. “These are kids as young as four years old learning how to tumble and cheer loudly.”
And with the addition of Game Day cheerleading as a varsity sport for the first time on Long Island this past fall, teams are now practicing more than 10 months out of the year.
“It’s very physically demanding, and some of my cheerleaders even play a spring sport on top of it,” Sachem North coach Danielle Gresalfi said. “It’s difficult to make the decision to take time off because you can start to fall back skill-wise. The competition has grown fiercer as the sport grows.”
While the competition may always be fierce, the squads waiting for their turn to perform can almost always be seen cheering the rest on.
Bonner added: “The biggest things I've learned as a cheerleader are selflessness and using your pride to bring happiness to others.”
