SEWARD, Neb. – It’s championship week for the Concordia University Competitive Cheer and Dance teams. The 2023 GPAC Championship competition (also a group qualifier for dance) will unfold on Friday for dance and on Saturday for cheer. Doane will serve as the host once again with action taking place inside the Haddix Center. Additional details can be found below. The reigning champions from last season are Midland for cheer and Morningside for dance.
2023 GPAC Dance Championship/NAIA Northwest Qualifier
Friday, Feb. 24 | 3 p.m. | Haddix Center (Doane campus)
Live Stream: https://www.youtube.com/user/doaneathletics/live2
Event Schedule – Dance
-Performance times:
3:00 p.m. – Concordia
3:11 p.m. – Northwestern
3:22 p.m. – Morningside
3:33 p.m. – Viterbo
3:44 p.m. – Mount Marty
3:55 p.m. – Midland
4:06 p.m. – Dordt
4:17 p.m. – College of Saint Mary
4:28 p.m. – Doane
4:39 p.m. – Hastings
5:54 p.m. – finals begin (order based on preliminary scores)
7:45 p.m. – All-conference auditions
8:30 p.m. – Awards ceremony/score announcements
Leading up to the championship competition, Head Coach Mandi Maser’s dance squad has competed in eight separate events (nine total performances). In the eight performances that have counted towards the NAIA scoring system, the Bulldogs have turned in an average score of 81.88, a figure that ranks 11th nationally. The Bulldogs’ top score of 85.9 came in a dual win over defending NAIA national champion Morningside and broke the program record. Concordia came close to that number last week while posting an 84.23 at the Dordt Invite. The Bulldogs have been led by seniors Katie Birtell, Madi Koch and Lizbeth Vargas-Tapia. Birtell has twice been named Honorable Mention All-GPAC.
2023 Competition Scores/Results
1/11 – 80.55 (dual vs. College of Saint Mary)
1/19 – 85.9 (dual vs. Morningside)
1/25 – 83.1 (triangular vs. Hastings/Mount Marty)
1/28 – 1st place (CIT)
2/3 – 78.97 (3rd place at Doane Invite)
2/10 – 80.33 (T-4th place at York Crown Classic)
2/11 – 79 / 82.95 (duals vs. Northwestern/William Penn)
2/18 – 84.23 (4th place at Dordt Invite)
At the 2022 GPAC Championship/NAIA Northwest Qualifier, the Bulldogs placed seventh (out of 10) with a total score of 67.99. The top three place finishers were Morningside (89.24), Viterbo (83.77) and Midland (83.74). Viterbo is the lone non-GPAC school that competes at the qualifier.
For those who qualify, the 2023 season will continue at the seventh annual Competitive Cheer and Dance National Championship, scheduled for March 10-11 in Ypsilanti, Mich.