This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
11/05/2013 11:00 PMEast Haven's Pom Pom squad continues to grow in size-they're up to 22 girls this season-so it's hard to believe that this year's team only has two seniors and just one who has been with the gang all four years. Alicia Amatruda is one of the two Pom Pom squad's captains this season and the lone member who's been on the team since she was a freshman.
"I was very excited to be captain this year and honored that the girls chose me," says Alicia. "It's important for me to help out the team and show them because I'm the only one that's been on the team for four years so I know how everything goes and what's expected of us so I can set a good example in that sense."
You may have noticed Alicia and the Pom Pom squad performing at halftime during East Haven's football games, but their competitive season has yet to start. They begin their competitions in the winter and Alicia can't wait for the Dancing in the Woods event.
"Dancing in the Woods I like because it's a smaller dance competition so there are not as many teams to compete with," says Alicia, who also noted she enjoys the team's competition at Quinnipiac. "I like the Quinnipiac competition because you get to see all the other dancers and their routines."
Alicia has been dancing since she was two years old and excels in any basic dancing the team does as well as double turns, which she calls very important.
"It's a double pirouette. We do it a lot in the dance," says Alicia. "In order to make the team you have to be able to do a double turn and then they work on it throughout the season. It's in the dance about three or four times."
The dancing Alicia does with Pom Pom is different than that of what she does in her dance class away from school and so she really enjoys the challenge of learning the new routines.
"Her dance spirit, she always has it," says Pom Pom Head Coach Kim Oca. "She always works hard, always gives it her all, and is always supporting the team. She is always ready for a challenge. We're thinking of new technical elements and dance skills to incorporate into our routine and she's always ready to challenge herself and learn."
Not only does Alicia enjoy the challenge of learning a new routine, but also the way in which the new style of dancing has given her more range on the dance floor.
"Pom Pom has helped me develop because it's a different kind of dance from what I've done at dancing school where I do tap, ballet, and jazz," says Alicia. "It's really opened up my variety of dance to different things. Pom Pom incorporates more jumps so it's a different kind of dancing. It's a stiffer as opposed to a more loose dancing style."
The dancing aspect was attractive to Alicia when first joining the Pom Pom squad, but not as much as the team's role in helping East Haven hockey. The girls cheer on the hockey team at every home and away game and it's something Alicia noticed when she was younger.
"When I was little, I used to go to the hockey games and I used to see the Pom Pom girls standing in the bleachers," says Alicia who hopes to attend the University of New Haven to study forensics. "I knew when I went to high school that I wanted to be one of those girls."