Six Straight Championships For Newtown Varsity Winter Guard

The Newtown High School Varsity Winter Color Guard won its sixth Musical Arts Conference Championship in a row last Saturday night at Trumbull High School. The guard performed its show “Have You Got it in You” to an enthusiastic crowd. The participants completed their undefeated MAC campaign with a season high score of 88.4 in the Scholastic National A class, beating their closest competitor, Shelton, by 1.9 points.

The Nighthawk Varsity guard won the SWC Championship earlier in March and finished in fourth place at the Winter Guard International regional competition in February. The guard members for the 2009 season were: Seniors Jenna Kakadeles and Leigh Snellback; sophomores Victoria Braga, Melissa Charles, Olivia DeWald, Samantha Mancini, Marissa Metcalf, Molly Ritter, Alyssa Wade and Sarah Walton; freshman Sara Hetzer; and eighth-grader Brianna Bauch.

The Nighthawk Winter Guard captains are sophomores Nicole Scalora and Sarah Smith. Bob Findley, Janos Pergely and Michele Liscio comprise the guard staff.

Newtown’s Junior Varsity Winter Guard captured the AAA class silver medal at MAC Championships this past Saturday. This guard is made up of students from Newtown Middle School and faced tough competition from the Bethel Winter Guard. The AAA guard members were Gabrielle Amlicke, Caitlin Fitz Gerald, Brandon Ghent, Grace Hubbard, Olivia Avery and Paige Thanasoulis. The captains are Cherokee Belval and Victoria Hanulik. Findley, Pergely, Carra Buckley, Lauren Hanulik and Melissa Tolson form the staff.

For the second year in a row Newtown’s Junior Varsity Guard was awarded the silver medal in its class, coming in just a tenth of a point behind the Bethel Guard. Newtown’s Junior Varsity guard is made up of students from Reed Intermediate School and is coached by Findley, Scalora and Smith. The 2009 guard members were include Portia Baudisch, Sarah Braga, Kenzie Casey, Courtney Datin, Camryn Gaudett, Kayleigh Granville, Caitlin Jones, Molly LaPak, Cara Milhaven, Bridget O’Donnell, Becky Romano, Hannah Schwartz, Emily Sippin and Kelly Skewis. The captains are sixth-graders Maddy Hintzen, Ally Montague and Kelsea Morshuk.

All three Newtown Winter Guards perform under the direction of Newtown High School Band Director Kurt Eckhardt.