Father Judge cheerleaders take second in nationals

The all-girls cheerleading squad that represents the all-boys Father Judge's athletic teams recently took second place among 28 squads from across the country at the National High School Cheerleading Championship at Disney World in Orlando, Fla.

The Father Judge cheerleaders, 30 girls and four alternates coached by Siobhan Latta, competed in the super large varsity category. Their routine consisted of 21/2 minutes of gymnastics, stunts, jumps and intricate dance moves.

"We competed in a regional competition in New Jersey in November and received a bid to the national competition," Latta said. "You have to be invited to the the national contest."

Acccording to Latta, most of the girls come from St. Hubert, an all-girls school in the Catholic League. Others come from Nazareth and St. Basil, two all-girls schools that are members of the Athletic Association of Catholic Academies.

"We do our own fund-raising [for travel]," Latta said of the program that is in its ninth year at Judge. "We sponsor local competitions for grade schools and recreation centers."

This is the fifth time the team has competed at nationals.

The Judge team is looking forward to the Catholic League cheerleading championships March 8 at Archbishop Carroll. It won the the big schools division title last year.

"The Catholic League is formally sponsoring it for the first time this year," Latta noted.

Lacrosse and field hockey standout Lauren Purvis, a junior at Hatboro-Horsham, has orally comitted to play both sports at Penn State, a rarity at the Division 1 level.

Purvis, who has won numerous area and national honors for both sports, is the first player to have been offered a dual scholarship in field hockey and lacrosse in more than a decade at Penn State.

"I'm so excited because I have a passion for both sports," Purvis said. "Some people have told me I'm crazy to do both sports because of the demands on you. At least I won't be bored. It will be an opportunity to meet more friends."

Purvis said she was particularly excited because, by playing at Penn State, she'll have an chance to play a year with her older sister, Jenny. Jenny is a sophomore on the Nittany Lions field hockey team.

Purvis is undecided on what she will major in but indicated she might look at education. Her mother, Sue, teaches at Springfield (Delco) and coached there for a number of years as well.