Daytona Beach, Fla. – The Lenoir-Rhyne University Spirit Team placed second overall with its performance in the inaugural Gameday Division II at the 2018 National Cheerleading Association (NCA) Championships this past weekend.

The Bears found themselves on top of the competition after the first day of the two-day event and finished strongly, securing a top-two finish.

The Bears sent cheerleading-only teams to past NCA Championships but this was their first year under Head Coach Christy Creson to perform as a group in the Gameday Division event. 

"We went into day one very confident and solid and hit our routine," said Creson.  "One of the judge's comments was genuine Gameday showmanship and they loved all the different aspects we incorporated into the mat!"

"We landed in first place after the preliminaries with the second-highest score of the day in both Division I and Division II, right behind N.C. State with a 93.57.  On day two, the Bears we're ready for their final performance and to hit the mat one last time."

"Unfortunately, we had one small bobble in a stunt and dance sequence but overall brought more energy and really made Bear Nation proud as the crowd was on their feet cheering for our team.  The Bears placed second, missing the national title by seven one hundredths of a point!  We are proud of our performance at NCA and have placed the highest at the national collegiate cheer and dance competition in the school's history."