Competitive Cheer:
Carlson has sights set on another state title

By Hank Minckiewicz

Tuesday, January
27, 2009

The
Carlson competitive cheerleading team won the Division 2 state championship
last season, the second in school history.

But the
Marauders are not resting on their laurels.

The team,
which has been ranked as high as No. 1 this season, has won three
competitions this season and is currently ranked second in the division to Allen Park. Ironically, Allen Park was second to Carlson at the
state finals a last year.

This
year’s Carlson team is dominated by underclassmen, including eight
freshmen.

Co-coach
Christina Wilson said the young roster members have a strong will to win and
the whole team is motivated by getting back to the finals and trying for
back-to-back titles.

Wilson added that the team’s
upperclassmen have provided first-rate leadership.

So far
this season the Marauders have won CCCAM Scholarship Invitational at Wyandotte on Dec. 13, the Pat Christiansen
Memorial competition at Carlson on Jan. 3 and the Wyandotte Invitational on
Jan. 17.

Carlson
was second to Allen Park by .5 points at the Allen Park
Invitational on Jan. 10.

The past
weekend the Marauders were at the Brighton Invitational, along with state-ranked
teams from DeWitt and Mt. Pleasant.

Carlson
is led by seniorsDelayna Herndon, Sara Jokela, Rachel Sarkody and
Megan Zander and juniors Chantelle
Baron, Rebecca Cleary, Courtney McCarary and Lainey Williams.

The rest
of the team is made up of sophomores Desiree Baron, Shelby Branham, Jessica Dhans, Bailee
Gregg, Lisa Lewis and Halee Stratton and freshmen
Paige Arrington, Kim Desimpelaere, Courtney Gibson,
Alisha Hixon, LeAnne Jacobs,
Kayla Sharlow, Lindsay Smith, Carly
Williams.

The team
is coached by Williams and Danielle Jokela.

Williams
said that the geographical closeness of Carlson and Allen Park high schools,
their lofty state status the past two seasons and the fact that the teams
compete together at a number of competitions throughout the season has turned
the schools into big rivals.

The host
Jaguars won the most recent showdown between the teams at the Allen Park
Invitational earlier this month, but Carlson will get a chance at revenge on
Jan. 31 when both teams will compete at the Lake Orion competition.

In
addition the Carlson and Allen Park, most of the other top-ranked
Division 2 teams in the state are expected to be there.