Sachem North alum Danielle Gresalfi has officially been appointed as the new head cheer coach at her alma mater.
Gresalfi, who graduated from Sachem in 2012, has competed at a high level in cheerleading, winning titles at Sachem, Hofstra and for Team USA.
She is looking forward to being in familiar confines, helping her old program capture glory again.
We sat down with Gresalfi to talk about her new coaching role:
How have your previous cheer experiences gotten you ready for this position?
DG: “Being a part of a variety of different cheer programs as well as being coached by different individuals at all levels of cheerleading has helped me understand the type of coach I aspire to be. I think that all of the opportunities that I have had as a cheerleader has taught me all of the knowledge that I need in order to run a successful team. I have been on the athlete side of cheerleading from my years at Sachem all the way through my graduate year at Hofstra and have also been on the instructing side through my years as a UCA instructor. Having both perspectives have helped me understand cheerleading at a whole new level.”
What does it mean for you to coach at Sachem?
DG: “I always wanted to be able to come back to Sachem and give back to the community that gave me so much. It means everything to be able to bring my knowledge and experiences to this program so that all the athletes who come through can get that same amazing experience that I had!”
What are your immediate and long term goals for the team?
DG: “I really want to be able to get to know the athletes in the program and keep it close knit at all the levels from varsity down. It’s my goal to have the girls trust and respect me as well as all of their other teammates so we can have a great chemistry throughout the season. I have high hopes for all the talent coming through the program. I hope that we can have great success not just with supporting schools’ athletics but at the state and national level during competition season.”
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro