Dubuque, Iowa -- The Dance and Cheer teams from the American Rivers Conference took to the floor of the Stoltz Sports Center, on the University of Dubuque's campus, for the third annual A-R-C Competitive Dance and Cheer Invitational. The champions in the Dance divisions were Nebraska Wesleyan - Hip-Hop and Jazz, and Simpson - Pom. The cheer divisions saw Wartburg claim the All-Women and the Stunt Group Divisions, while Nebraska Wesleyan was the winner in the Game Day Division, which was part of the invitational for the first time.

NWU's Hip-Hop win was just one point better than second-place Simpson. Simpson's three-point win over Wesleyan in the Pom category was another very close competition. The host school took second in the Cheer - All-Women Division as the Spartans came up 8.3 points shy of Wartburg. Dubuque also was second in the Cheer - Stunt Division for a total of two trophies on the day.

Simpson was 13 points back of NWU in the Jazz performances, meaning the Storm carried away three trophies. Central's runner-up finish in the Game Day Division earned a trophy for the Dutch. But Nebraska Wesleyan was the big hardware winner with four trophies, the three first-place finishes already mentioned and that second-place trophy in the Dance - Pom competition.

The invitational is scheduled to return to Dubuque next February with Loras as the host school.