Summit Dancers Excel At Regional Championships

Local residents Catherine Lawlor (16) who is a junior at Mount Saint Mary Academy and Ciara Lawlor (14) a freshman at Summit High School recently danced at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships in Philadelphia. Catherine competed on two winning Championship Teams. Ciara danced on five winning teams. She also competed in solo championships, and qualified to dance at the World Irish Dance Championships, which will be held in Glasgow, Scotland from March 20th to March 26th. Ciara will be competing in the Solo U15 Championships and the Celii Team competition. Both dancers have been dancing with The Marie Moore School of Irish Dance in Scotch Plains since they were 5.
Claire Borzner, a championship Irish dancer and the girls’ neighbor, helped get the girls involved years prior. Also, their mother emigrated from Ireland to US 23 years ago and was happy to see the girls show an interest in one of our cultural traditions even though she was not a dancer herself. Once they started there was a snowball effect: They began winning local competitions and then began competing on a regional and national level.
The girls also perform with the school at events, such as parades, nursing Homes, libraries, schools and private parties, particularly around St Patrick’s Day. They have made lifelong friends through team participation. The Marie Moore Ceili teams are renowned for their excellence and currently hold the National championship for U16 Figures.
Catherine, also runs varsity cross country and Track for Mount Saint Mary Academy whereas Ciara has a keen interest in music and theater. She also plays Field Hockey at Summit High and plans to run track this Spring.