Missouri Valley Cheer Wins National Championship

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. - The Missouri Valley cheer team captured the program's third national championship, winning the 2018 NAIA Competitive Cheer National Championship, Saturday afternoon inside the Abe Lemons Arena on the campus of Oklahoma City University. RESULTS

The Vikings entered the championhip round in second place, posting a score of 85.47 to sit behind the hosts. The preliminary round provided 25 percent of each team's score, setting the table for a final round routine to make up the remainder of the two-round total.

Following the final round of competition Saturday afternoon, Missouri Valley earned a total score of 86.45, narrowly leaping over Oklahoma City in the team standings, which finished second with a score of 85.42. St. Francis (Ind.) placed third with a score of 82.78. The championship was the third overall (1999, 2013, 2018) for the program and first since the NAIA recognized Competitive Cheer as a championship sport.

"This team has faced, fought and overcame so many obstacles this year, and this competition was no different," said head coach Tori Cox. "Coming out of prelims in second place was the just the fire the team needed to come out and take the title. The best part of the competition was having every dance and cheer team line the floor and cheer us on through our final performance. In all my years of cheerleading, I have never seen anything like that before. The screaming in the stands was loud and it was hard to hear the music, but it was a great atmosphere. The team had two performances of a lifetime and made their coaches, families and school proud. We couldn't have asked for anything more from them. I know I will remember this moment forever."

The Heart of America Athletic Conference also had three representatives in the Dance portion of the championship event. The three teams claimed the final spots in the top 10, led by Grand View (8th, 76.72) and followed by Central Methodist (9th, 74.40) and Baker (10th, 74.21).