Cheer teams start climb at Oxford Invitational

BY DAN STICKRADT

STAFF WRITER

For many schools,
Saturday's Oxford Invitational will be a true test to see where they all
stand.

With several quality
competitive cheer teams set to take the floor, schools will be forced to rise
to the occasion in order to finish near or at the top.

"There are a lot
of good teams coming," said first-year Oxford coach Alanna
Stockley. "It should be a fun tournament. It
usually is pretty competitive."

Among the top teams
will be Rochester Stoney Creek, a state qualifier last season in Class A, and
Lake Orion, which has qualified for the
state finals in eight of the past 11 seasons. Other schools will be Troy
Athens (No. 10 Class A), Oxford, Troy, Lapeer East, Lapeer West, Chesaning,
Ortonville-Brandon, Allen Park
and Onaway. All teams but Chesaning and Onaway are Class A schools.

"It's our first
competition of the year, so we'll definitely know where we stand after they
day," said Nancy DeAvila, Lake Orion's
head coach. "A lot of the schools started (last weekend), but we usually
wait until the Oxford Invitational to get started. It gives us plenty of time
to prepare our rounds and stunts."

Varsity and
junior-varsity teams will compete in the main field house, while freshman and
middle school programs will face off in the Auxiliary-East gymnasium. Varsity
competition will begin at 10 a.m.

Originally published January 12, 2006

Lake Orion's Stephanie Duda (top) and the
Dragons' competitive cheer team came within 2.5 points of a state-qualifying
berth last season -- a shortcoming the Dragons hope to remedy this season.