Gladstone’s competitive cheer team competes in Division 4 action at the Escanaba Invite on Jan. 11, 2025 at Escanaba High School. (Adam Hinch/Daily Press)

ESCANABA — Five U.P. schools displayed their passion for cheerleading at the Escanaba Competitive Cheer Invite here Saturday.

Escanaba and Gladstone represented Division 3 and Bark River-Harris, Manistique and Norway represented Division 4.

Gladstone picked up the win in the Division 3 class with an overall score of 694. The Braves posted a 249 score in the third round which was big for a team that has switched its routine multiple times in the last couple weeks.

“I was very proud of our round three performance,” Braves coach Stacie Kitson said. “We have changed the routine three times in the last two weeks so for them to come out and hit it as clean as they did today made me very proud of them.”

The Braves also posted scores of 209.5 in the first round and 190.5 in the second round.

“This win gives us a lot of confidence going forward,” Braves senior Kristy Karl said. “I think our third round was the best. I enjoy the stunts and tumbling and the competitiveness of the round.”

Escanaba was the runner up with an overall score of 348.3 but did not compete in round three as their program was not complete.

“It felt good to get out and compete on the mat,” Escanaba senior Hailey Swenor said. “We had a good first round. I think it was one of our best performances this season and that really gives up confidence for the upcoming matches.”

In Division 4 Bark River-Harris came in third place with a score of 550.02, Manistique was second at 596.1 and Norway picked up the win with a 672.24.

“This was a big win for this program,” Knights coach Hailey Micoley said. “Our first round really stood out today. We had a lot of mistakes in this round Thursday and we were able to correct them today which will give the girls a big boost of confidence going forward.”

Escanaba, Gladstone, Manistique and Bark River-Harris teams will all be back in action Thursday night in Gladstone.