Sachem School District's Cheer Teams Heading To Nationals In Florida Next Month

FARMINGVILLE, NY — The Sachem School District's high school cheerleading squads — North and East — are headed to the Universal Cheerleading Association's High School Nationals next month at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

East will be in the Small Varsity Division, and North the Medium Varsity Division, a district spokeswoman said.

East, which will be headed to the nationals for the 15th consecutive year, won the Section XI Suffolk County Championship last year, and the team was 5th in the state's D1 Large Division.

The national competition will be held from Feb. 10 to 13 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando, according to a Sachem School District spokeswoman. The teams will begin competing in the preliminary round on Friday with the hope of advancing through the weekend all the way to the final round on Sunday, the spokeswoman said.

To qualify, the team attends a Universal Cheerleading Association regional event that usually takes place in December, and based on the score and placement, the team can be offered a spot in the competition, according to the spokeswoman.

"The teams compete in the division that they will compete in at the national championship in order to earn their bid," she wrote in an email.

Sachem's teams are not the only ones headed down south.

Patchogue-Medford's Varsity Cheerleading Squad will compete in the nationals for the first time in 20 years.