Montgomery Wildcats Cheerleaders Win at National Championships and Unlimited Football Team Advanced to Eastern Region Playoffs
On December 5th, the Montgomery Wildcats Pee Wee Cheer Team won the National Championship in their Pee Wee-Level 1-Small Team Division when they competed in the 2017 Pop Warner National Cheer & Dance Championships held at ESPN Wide World of Sports™ in Orlando, Florida. Coached by Head Coach Beth Trawinski and Asst. Coach Lisa Maddox, this new team overtook their competition in their first time competing at the National competition. Coach Beth Trawinski said, "The girls on this Pee Wee team have been dedicated since the team started cheering in August. Every practice, they were dedicated and determined to work harder and improve their skills. As a coach, I couldn't be prouder to coach this great group of girls and see them work as a team and accomplish such a goal of becoming National Pee Wee Cheerleading Champions!”
And just a few days later, on December 8th, the Wildcats Varsity team earned 5th Place National Honors at the National Championships in the highly competitive Varsity-Level 2-Medium Team Division. Having won first place in their Eastern Region bid to advance to finals, the Varsity team was thrilled to be among the finalists recognized for their hard work all season at the Pop Warner National Championships. Both teams also won highest score Champions in their respective Level 1 and Level 2 divisions at the Jersey Valley Conference competition held at Montgomery High School in October, and they will be recognized for their Nationals achievements at the February 15 Township Committee meeting.
Equally impressive performance was achieved by the Montgomery Wildcats Unlimited Division Football team, who also advanced to the semi-finals of the Pop Warner Eastern Region playoffs. The team finished the season at 6-3, and were the Jersey Valley Conference Champions, playing tough teams both in conference and throughout the state all season. Head Coach Marco Lainez said, “Despite being undersized as a collective unit for an Unlimited Level team, this year’s team proved you don’t have to be the biggest and fastest players out there to compete and have some success. These boys bought into ‘the team’ concept, did their respective jobs, and gave 100% on each and every rep.” Thanks to this level of dedication, this was the second consecutive year this team advanced to the Eastern Region playoffs.
These experienced Football and Cheer teams set great examples for their younger Flag and Mitey-Mite squad members of the association, who enthusiastically played great seasons of their own and appeared at exhibition competitions. We eagerly await to see their continued growth both on and off the field.
Watch for notices around town for the 2018 season registration to open shortly. Montgomery Youth Football and Cheer Association (MYFCA) is an all-volunteer, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, affiliated with the Pop Warner National Football, Cheer & Dance Association and are members of the Jersey Valley Conference. MYFCA has served Montgomery Township and the surrounding community since 1999. Find them on Facebook at Montgomery Wildcats-Youth Football and Cheer Association.