Figure skating: Highland's Cali Roloson takes silver at U.S. Figure Skating nationals

Cali Roloson routinely performs of a delicate balancing act, gracefully maneuvering a slippery surface and making it seem easy as she confidently approaches each of the twists and turns during a timed production.

She’s pretty good at figure skating, too.

The Highland native recently placed second in the U.S. Figure Skating Excel National Final in Massachusetts, medaling for the third consecutive year while competing at increasingly difficult skill levels.

“It’s unbelievable,” Roloson said of her placement on July 14. “It’s like a dream come true and I’m still kind of in shock at what I’ve been able to do.”

Her parents sometimes feel that way too, watching the 17-year-old successfully manage her responsibilities as a burgeoning figure skating star and musical performer while also excelling academically. In essence, she's successfully skating on thin ice.

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“As a mom, I frequently look at her and go, ‘Wow!’” Lisa Roloson said. “She’s always been self-motivated and driven, and whatever she decides she wants to do, she makes it happen.”

Cali is a rising senior at Arlington High School ― her mother works in the district — and she is a straight-A student ranked among the top academic performers in a large graduating class. That’s in addition to being an all-state flute player in the school’s Symphony Philharmonia group, oh, and being one of the better teenage figure skaters in the country in her spare time.

She typically practices five days a week in two-hour intervals at McCann Ice Arena in Poughkeepsie, then does “off-ice work,” including circuit training and Pilates.

But, Cali insisted, the time management for schoolwork is the “easy” part. When she gets home from the rink, there usually is a three-hour window with which to complete her homework, get in some studying and make progress on long-term assignments.

“It’s important to me to want to strive and do well,” she said. “I’ve always wanted to be the best at whatever I’m doing, and I need to know that I’m at least doing everything I can to make it possible.”

The talent and coordination are prerequisites for figure skating, of course. But that mindset complements it, and it’s what has enabled her to improve steadily and eventually reach the “Senior Excel” level.

Competing in the senior women category of the Excel National tournament, Cali scored a 79.49, finishing just than two points behind first place. Skating to a mashup medley of songs from the Divergent soundtrack, she impressed the judges with her signature double Lutz and toe loop combinations during a clean four-minute performance.

“I absolutely want to win gold, but I’m proud of what I’ve been able to accomplish so far,” she said. “Going up a level, I wanted to prove to myself that I could be successful.”

She also took second last summer in the Excel National Final, competing as a junior woman.

Cali remembers being gifted her first pair of skates by her aunt on her fourth birthday, but she can’t quite recall what initially sparked her interest in figure skating at that age.

“I must’ve seen someone do it, maybe on TV, and told myself that I wanted to,” she said with a laugh. “My parents have been so supportive, and they deserve so much credit. I couldn’t do any of this without them and my coaches.”

Her mom and dad, Phil Roloson, grew up playing basketball and knew little about this sport before her daughter immersed herself in it. But they acquiesced to Cali’s request and she began taking lessons as a 6-year-old.

“The learning was typical in the beginning, but she was hooked,” Lisa Roloson said. “There were older girls she saw doing the spins and jumps and she wanted to learn that.”

Now, she’s working to incorporate in her repertoire a triple axel — a complex and dazzling spin move that only 20 women have successfully executed in competition.

“They’re not consistent yet,” she said of herself practicing the technique, “but I’m getting there.”

Cali began skating to choreographed programs at 8 and it was during the ninth grade, she said, that she noticed a significant growth in her skill level. Soon thereafter, she would be competing and medaling at the national level.

The competition season runs from February into July so she’ll spend the remainder of the summer and fall workshopping, learning and mastering new moves and collaborating with her coaches to develop a new routine.

Then, there are the other obligations. She’s looking forward to performing in Arlington’s orchestra concert next spring and she also plans to skate collegiately.

“We’re incredibly proud of her,” Lisa Roloson said. “It’s been 11 years in the making and to see her progress the way she has is amazing.”

Stephen Haynes: shaynes@poughkeepsiejournal.com; 845-437-4826; Twitter: @StephenHaynes4

This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Figure skating: Highland's Cali Roloson takes silver at U.S. Figure Skating nationals