Three cheers for CSI's CUNYAC championship squad Wednesday, March 14, 2012, 9:41 AM
By
Staten Island Advance
WILLOWBROOK -- The College of Staten Island (CSI) cheerleading squad overcame a hard year with recruitment and practices to come out on top at the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) Cheerleading Championship last Thursday. The Dolphins had a home-court advantage competing at CSI’s Sports & Recreation Center. Though Brooklyn College, the defending champion, came with full force, The College of Staten Island cheerleading squad won its first CUNYAC title since 2003.
the Dolphins were comfortable and focused. The Dolphins were coming off three
consecutive runner-up finishes, including last year, when CSI suffered the closest loss (nine points) in CUNYAC history to Brooklyn College, the five-time defending champs. “Last year, the team really held themselves back because they were afraid of that second-place finish again,” said coach Justine E. Green. “They were afraid of getting a silver medal head.” This year, however, the Dolphins won the competition by 16.5 points over runners-up, John Jay College. The CSI cheerleading squad went into the competition confident and did not let their past losses weigh them down. The squad went third out of four teams, and chose not to watch the other teams perform so “they were not focusing on their competitors, but themselves, and what they could do as a team,” explained Ms. Green. The CSI cheerleading team was first formed in 2003, and won the championship that year. However, the following year, the team was disbanded due to lack of members. In 2009, the team was reorganized by students but, despite the high finishes the past three years, the Dolphins struggled again to get enough team members. Page 75 of 175