ORANGE CITY, Iowa – The College of Saint Mary competitive dance team finished on a high note Saturday as it placed seventh in the Great Plains Athletic Conference Cheer and Dance Championships, one spot higher than last season.

After opening with a preliminary score of 75.96, Coach Jennifer Wasik's crew improved to a 77.4 in the finals to finish with a final total of 77.04.

"Wow! We had our two best performances of the season today to close things out at the GPAC Championships,'' Wasik said. "I couldn't be more proud of this team for stepping onto the floor and showing what we're truly capable of. Our returning dancers set the tone early in the season by establishing competitive goals, and our rookies fully bought in. We knew we wanted to hold our own in a conference with an extremely high level of competition.''

Midland University won with a score of 95.41 and was followed by Doane University (88.85), Concordia University (87.99), Morningside University (87.16), Dordt University (81.8), Hastings College (79.41), CSM, Northwestern College (76.82) and Briar Cliff University (73.96).

Wasik said the Flames started the day strong and continued to get better as it went along.

"The team went into prelims feeling calm and confident,'' she said. "Being in eighth place after prelims, we knew we had more to give and they proved it by leaving everything on the floor in finals. This was just the second competition of the season where we were able to compete with a full team due to injuries and illness, which made the performances even more meaningful.''

Competing for the Flames were Hannah Elliott, Evelyn Andrade, Elizabeth Kenny, Delainey Benedict, Grace Denning, Haley Engleman, Ellie Frederick, Kelsey Beles, Millie Johnson and Kaylie Kuehn.

"Proud is an understatement,'' Wasik said. "This team committed to the work, trusted the process and showed noticeable growth, week after week. There was no better way to finish the season.''