2018 NAIA Competitive Cheer & Dance National Championships - Day 1 Recap
Story by Chad Waller, Director of Athletic Communications & Media
OKLAHOMA CITY – (Schedule | Watch Live) After preliminary rounds on Day 1 at the NAIA Competitive Cheer & Dance (CCD) National Championships, Oklahoma City tops the cheer list while St. Ambrose (Iowa) owns the lead in the dance category. On Saturday, the finals take place at 10 a.m. CDT (dance) and 12:15 p.m. (cheer) with the awards ceremony set to go at 2:25 p.m. The event takes place on the campus of Oklahoma City University at Abe Lemons Arena.
Today marks the second annual National Championship, hosted by Oklahoma City. The NAIA is the only collegiate athletics association to offer a national championship in these sports.
Preliminary scores counted towards 25 percent of a team’s overall score. Each team will perform in the finals when scores will count for 75 percent of the total score. Tomorrow, teams are placed in order based on the standings after the Preliminary Round.
The defending national champion in the competitive cheer competition is right where it ended last year. Oklahoma City leads the 12-team field with an 89.12 preliminary mark. Missouri Valley is right behind with an 85.47 score. With her team in the lead, Oklahoma City head coach Alicia Bailey comments on her programs efforts on Day one: “I think our team had a pretty solid performance today – we definitely had some mistakes and have some things we can improve on for tomorrow, but it’s all little stuff that can definitely be fixed.
“I’m really excited about our standing and our score and where everything ended up but we have to remember that tomorrow is a whole new day and tomorrow’s where most of the points count. We’re ready to show up and put a great performance out with hopefully zero deductions and have a great outcome.”
St. Ambrose (Iowa) holds a slight lead in the competitive dance competition with a prelim score of 87.43. The Bees are ahead of second-place Oklahoma City with an 86.43 clip. Midland (Neb.) is third (82.50) and Point Park (Pa.) fourth (82.17).
Preliminary Standings
CHEER
1. Oklahoma City, 89.12
2. Missouri Valley, 85.47
3. Saint Francis (Ind.), 81.87
4. St. Ambrose (Iowa), 76.62
5. Concordia (Mich.), 75.38
6. Lourdes (Ohio), 72.53
7. Indiana Wesleyan, 67.65
8. Missouri Baptist, 64.50
9. Midland (Neb.), 58.82
10. Martin Methodist (Tenn.), 58.50
11. Tabor (Kan.), 58.10
12. Robert Morris (Ill.), 42.18
DANCE
1. St. Ambrose (Iowa), 87.43
2. Oklahoma City, 86.43
3. Midland (Neb.), 82.50
4. Point Park (Pa,), 82.17
5. Morningside (Iowa), 80.80
6. Siena Heights (Mich.), 77.10
7. Grand View (Iowa), 75.07
8. Baker (Kan), 74.33
9. Aquinas (Mich.), 73.80
10. Central Methodist (Mo.), 68.80
11. Loyola (La.), 66.60
12. Lindenwood-Belleville (Ill.), 64.87