DUBUQUE, Iowa -- The Dance and Cheer teams from the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) took to the floor of the Athletic Wellness Center on the campus of Loras College for the fourth annual A-R-C Competitive Dance and Cheer Invitational. The champions in the Dance Divisions were Simpson - Hip-Hop and Pom, and Central - Jazz. The Cheer division saw Wartburg take home two first place trophies in Game Day and Cheer Group Stunt. Buena Vista earned the Performance of Merit in the Cheer Stunt division. 

The closest finishes were in the Cheer Group Stunt division as all three competing teams finished within 4.5 points of each other. The Knights of Wartburg College took the top spot with 90 points, only a half point ahead of the University of Dubuque (89.5 points). The Beavers of Buena Vista finished third with 85.5 points. Game Day also saw a tight race, where Wartburg's routine garnered 249.5 points which was just 4.5 points better than Nebraska Wesleyan. Buena Vista was the only team that entered the Cheer Stunt and finished with 65.3 points, earning Performance of Merit. 

The Simpson Storm led the way in the Dance division, earning two first place trophies and a second place finish. In the Pom division, the Storm (263 points) took first place with an 18 point victory over Wartburg. The Central Dutch (266.5) prevailed over the Storm in the Jazz division with 25.5 points separating the teams. In the final dance category, hip-hop, Simpson took first place with 261 points, 24.5 points ahead of Buena Vista.