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Sports

Skaters Going to Hershey

Mennen Team headed for championship

A Morris Township-based skating team will compete at the Eastern Synchronized Skating Championships held this year at Hershey Park in Hershey, Pa., from Wednesday,  Jan. 25 through Saturday, Jan. 28.

Precisely Right Synchronized Skating has three teams competing in Hershey, each skating to a different score. The Preliminary team skates to Elvis while the Intermediate team uses music from the movie “National Treasure” for their routine.

The club’s most skilled and experience skaters are on the Junior team, which performs two programs at each competition, to Josh Groban in the short program and to selections from the movie “Sherlock Holmes” in their long program. Precisely Right’s Junior team has the only male skater in the US.

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All the teams were successful during the regular season. The Preliminary team earned the pewter medal at the Cape Cod Classic. The Intermediate team also received the pewter medal at the Terry Conners Competition. The Juniors captured 2 silvers and 2 pewter medals so far this regular season.

Skaters:
Junior Team
Sami Apuzzio, 16, Watchung Hills High School; Tina Bearden, 18, Mountain Lakes High School; Stephanie Brunner, 16, Montclair Kimberley Academy; Stephanie Catalioto, 17, Cornwall Central High School; Caroleena Goldman, 15, Randolph High School; Shauna Huber, 18, Delaware Valley High School; Erin McCarthy, 16, Villa Walsh Academy; Courtney McCullough, 17, West Morris Mendham High School; Amira Miyaji, 13, The Peck School; Doug Ober, 18, The Pingry School; Claire Ober, 15, Kent Place School; Alex Perez, 13, Bernardsville Middle School; Emily Segal, 17, Morristown Beard School; Jolie Schenerman, 17, Morristown Beard School; Tara Saideman, 16, Randolph High School; Kaity Vermillion, 17, Ridge High School; Kiernan Vining, 15, Chatham High School.
Intermediate Team
Grace Fanning, 12, Park Middle School; Jillian Gargano, 12, Academy of our Lady of Peace; Gabby Goodwin,12, Anthony Middle School; Bethany Ho, 14, Bernardsville Middle School; Kate Laufenberg, 14, Valleyview Middle School;  Erica Luing, 13, Briarcliff School; Carol Porges, 14, The Pingry School; Mackenzie Robertson, 13, The Most Blessed Sacrament; Leah Schachman, 11, Randolph Middle School; Alex Perez, 13, Bernardsville Middle School; Erin McCarthy, 16, Villa Walsh;  Kiernan Vining, 15, Chatham High School; Maddie Winter, 12, William Annin Middle School
Preliminary Team
Stephanie Arias, 9, Morristown; Olivia Bigham, 10, Salt Brook School; Helen Cheng, 10, Sandshore Elementary School; Ava Glaser, 7, Ironia Elementary School; Jessica Kaplan, 11, Florence M. Gaudneer School; Katie Kelly, 11 Oak Knoll School; Daniellle Luing, 8, Wildwood School; Ellie Schraft, 11,  Marissa Steiner, 11, Florence M. Gaudneer School; Anna Torell, 8, Washington School; Anya Trybulec,11, Valleyview Middle School; Emily Trybulec, 9, Sarah Younger, 11, William Annin Middle School; Avery Zigon, 9, Washington Avenue School; Grace Hamerschlag, 10, Gil St. Bernard School, Alexandra Mroczko, 10, Torey J. Sabaatini Elementary School

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Synchronized skating is the fastest-growing discipline in figure skating, with more than 500 teams competing across the United States. It is a team sport in which 8 to 20 skaters perform a program together. The same judging system is used as in singles, pairs and dance and is characterized by teamwork, speed, intricate formations and challenging step sequences.

Each year, approximately 35 colleges participate in U.S. Figure Skating’s synchronized skating sectional championship, entering the open collegiate, collegiate and senior levels. Precisely Right alumni have gone on to skate for Boston University, Northeastern University, Western Michigan and most recently, Team Excel, a team of skaters from colleges all over the New England area.

The teams are members of the United States Figure Skating Organization and locally a member of The Skating Club of Morris. The teams practice at Mennen Arena in Morris Township and Rock Ice in Dunellen. Try-outs are held in the spring. John Towill, Suzanne Laki-Echevarria and Kathy Ortilani coach the teams.

An open adult team has just formed and will compete at the Lee Ann Miele Competition in South Orange in March and various local exhibitions. In addition, Precisely Right is sponsoring a beginning synchronized skating class starting in February at Mennen Arena.

For more information contact Tara Luing, Team Manager at prsynchro@gmail.com or visit the website at www.preciselyrightteams.com

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