Kickline: Garden City High School's Version of The Rockettes

Garden City High School has its own version of "The Rockettes" – members of the kickline team. Their main goal, like the cheerleaders, is to extoll school spirit.  However, kickline is more of a dance team derivative and routines and steps are based on classical dance styles such as ballet to contemporary movements founded on jazz and hip-hop.

Team coach Samentha Samuel, who participated in kickline in high school, also studied ballet. She's very proud of her kickline team and their accomplishments.

"They're a great group of girls who work very hard," said Samuel. "We have a nine-month season which starts in July when the girls attend camp at Hofstra.  Football starts in August, so we have to be ready."

The team performs at all home football and basketball games. This year 85 girls tried out for 37 spots. Samuel looks for girls with stage presence, endurance and sportsmanship. Routines run three to four minutes long. From a technical perspective girls need to have excellent posture, good dance technique and the ability to perform high kicks and splits.

Routines are choreographed by the seniors on the team. They also have creative license to choose their own music. A different routine is performed for every game.

Senior Krissie Muncan, one of the team's four captains, loves being on the kickline team. She enjoys performing and choreography.

"The formations can be challenging, there's 37 girls to consider," remarked Muncan. "That's when I use my calculus."

Samuel admires how they rely on each other to make their routines work and the close teamwork fosters a special bond. She encourages team bonding and community activities. The girls walked together in the Jones Beach Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk this past October. The team also wore red and purple ribbons in their hair during their Homecoming performance to honor the Camp Anchor counselors who lost their lives during a tragic car accident this past summer. Red and purple represented the students' school colors. 

The team also participates in an annual kickline competition sponsored by the Long Island Kickline Association (LIKA) where they compete against high school teams from all over Long Island. Though not their primary mission, the team performs quite well. Three years ago the team won the championship. Last year they made it to the championships.  

Nancy Kalafus, Garden City's district director of athletics and physical education, commends the team's accomplishments and is always astounded when they perform their finale featuring their trademark splits.

"These girls work so hard," said Kalafus. "They practice two to three hours a day and their routines are based on optimal teamwork. Plus, the routines require a high-level of cardiovascular endurance. These are some of the most fit athletes in the school district."