Gloucester Alumni

By Julio Chuy
Staff writer
Gloucester Daily Times

Last April, Gloucester High School's Ashley Smith found little to do.
During the two preceding years, first as a freshman and then as a sophomore, she was accustomed to training and getting ready for a national cheerleading competition that Gloucester passed on last year.
"I just missed the competition," the 17-year-old said.
After taking a year off, for "rebuilding purposes," members of the Gloucester High School cheerleading squad are heading back to Orlando, Fla., for the Cheerleaders of America Ultimate National Championships to be held the first week in April.
"I'm glad to get a final chance to do it again in my senior year," Smith said.
The tournament is one in a series of national tournaments high school cheerleaders from across the country can participate in if they rate highly in their respective conferences.
Heading to Florida for Gloucester is the co-ed varsity team of 19 students, according to Eric Bichao, the cheerleading adviser.
Last year, after losing about 15 seniors, the cheerleading team decided to stay home for a "rebuilding year." This year, however, having added six freshmen to the squad and having juniors step up, the team is back and stronger than ever, Bichao said.
"This has been a really exciting year," said Bichao, who has been involved with the team since 1998 and coaches it along with Melissa Williams.
The squad won the bid to the Florida tournament after placing first in the Northeast Conference. It's the high school's seventh conference championship, Bichao said.
Another student who is excited about returning to Florida is senior Erica Mitchell, 17.
"It was disappointing not traveling last year but the time off did us good and I think we're a closer team now," she said.
One of the reasons for the excitement among the squad and coaches is that the high school has had success in national competitions.In 2004 and 2005, the team competed at the American Championships, also in Orlando, and won first place in both.