The Shadows of the Southern Connecticut Synchronized Skating team accepted their Bronze medal at the Olympic Oval Training Center in Lake Placid. The team was one of 29 Open Juvenile teams that competed in the Eastern Synchronized Sectional Championships this year.
The Shadows performed their 2:40 minute to “Why Don’t You Do Right?” by Sinead O’Connor. With a flight of 13 teams the following medaled: DC Edge from Washington DC won first place, CNY Blizzard Green from Pittsburgh won second, SSCS Shadows winning third, and Nor’easters from the North Atlantic Figure Skating Club won fourth. Shadow skater Emily Merole, a Stamford resident and student at Trinity Catholic High School in Stamford said, “It is a big deal for us to be #3 on the entire East Coast.” Teams came from the entire East Coast of the United States – from Maine to Florida and from the Ohio border east.
The Shimmers skated on Thursday and placed fifth of 21 Pre-Juvenile teams in the qualifying round. On Saturday, they faced stiff competition and finished 7th out of 12 in the final round.
“I could not be any prouder of both our teams. Each team skated beautifully to qualify for the championship round in their respective divisions and then went on to better their performances in their final events. It was a pleasure to watch them skate. They did everything that we set out to do. It was a great weekend for SCSS.” – Head Coach, Gina Valenzano-Gomez
The 2015 Eastern Synchronized Sectional Championships, sanctioned by U.S. Figure Skating, are the qualifying events leading to the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships. The Open Juvenile level, such as the Shadows, is considered a “non-qualifying” line and is one of six levels that competes only at the sectional championships level. There are eight other levels that advance to the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships.
Thus far, it has been a successful year for the Shadows with a Gold medal at the Colonial Classic in Lowell, MA; a Silver at the Terry Connors Open in Stamford, CT; and now a Bronze medal at this Eastern Sectional Championship. The team competes next month at the Connecticut Synchronized Skating Classic in Hamden.
The SCSS team consists of 40 skaters residing in Fairfield County communities: Stamford, Greenwich, Westport, Darien, New Canaan, Norwalk; and White Plains, NY. The club will host tryouts for the 2015-16 SCSS team in March. Visit the website for more information or Like them on Facebook and follow their season.
See also:
VIDEOS: SCSS Shimmers Rock Terry Connors Rink in 15th Annual Synchronized Skating Open
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