Competitive Cheerleading 3/10/2018 4:45:00 PM

Stars cheer, dance each take second at NAIA National Championships

OCU only program to place both teams in top three

OKLAHOMA CITY – Oklahoma City University took second place in both cheer and dance in Saturday's NAIA Competitive Cheer and Dance National Championship at Abe Lemons Arena.
OCU cheer had a final score of 85.42, 1.03 points behind first-place Missouri Valley. The Stars' dance team notched second after posting a score of 88.71, just 0.5 points back from Saturday's national champion St. Ambrose (Iowa).
Midland (Neb.), Oklahoma City and St. Ambrose were the only schools to have both its cheer and dance teams compete in this weekend's national championships. Of the three, the Stars were the only program to place both of its teams inside the top three in the final standings.
OCU cheer held the lead after Friday's preliminary round with 89.12 points, which surmounted to 22.28 points toward the Stars' final score. The Stars earned a subtotal score of 85.68 from the judges on Saturday, but lost 1.5 points in deductions for a final tally of 84.18 and 63.14 points toward the final score.
Both cheer and dance scores are tabulated by taking both the preliminary round score (25 percent of final total) and the final-round score (75 percent of final total).
"I'm so proud of this team and all they have accomplished this year," OCU cheer head coach Alicia Bailey said. "We had a great routine and just struggled executing at the end. The performance as a whole was phenomenal and I couldn't be prouder of the fight the team showed."
The Stars again dominated in the choreography category, notching two scores of nine or higher (with a max of 10 points) from the judges. Oklahoma City was also one of only two teams to notch multiple scores of 28 or better (out of a max of 30 points) in the jumping/tumbling category.
"This was a great season for our program," Bailey said. "Obviously, it's our goal every year to win a national championship and we are looking forward to next season. Congrats to Missouri Valley and the other teams who competed and continue to make this a great NAIA national championship competition."
In the dance competition, OCU sat in second after day one with a score of 86.43, resulting in 21.61 points toward its final score. The Stars improved in the finals, producing a subtotal score of 89.96 and only lost half a point in deductions for an 89.46, giving them 67.10 points toward their final score.
In eight categories of competition, Oklahoma City did not earn a score lower than 8.5 from the judges on Saturday. The Stars were especially great in the jazz technique, choreography, degree of difficulty and technical skills and execution categories, earning a score of 8.8 or higher from all three judges.
"I am so proud of them and could not be happier with the results," OCU dance head coach Tasha Hinex said. "We had a goal and we surpassed it. I can't wait for next year and to see the improvements of all the teams."

FINAL TEAM STANDINGS
CHEER
1. Missouri Valley, 86.45
2. Oklahoma City, 85.42
3. Saint Francis (Ind.), 82.78
4. Concordia (Mich.), 80.25
5. St. Ambrose (Iowa), 79.80
6. Midland (Neb.), 69.04
7. Lourdes (Ohio), 68.38
8. Indiana Wesleyan, 67.73
9. Martin Methodist (Tenn.), 67.34
10. Missouri Baptist, 63.93
11. Tabor (Kan.), 55.11
12. Robert Morris (Ill.), 53.17

DANCE
1. St. Ambrose (Iowa), 89.21
2. Oklahoma City, 88.71
3. Midland (Neb.), 85.45
4. Point Park (Pa.), 85.42
5. Morningside (Iowa), 83.50
6. Siena Heights (Mich.), 79.83
7. Aquinas (Mich.), 76.93
8. Grand View (Iowa), 76.72
9. Central Methodist (Mo.), 74.40
10. Baker (Kan.), 74.21
11. Loyola (La.), 70.68
12. Lindenwood-Belleville (Ill.), 65.67

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