MOUNT PLEASANT – Gibraltar Carlson and Allen Park have perhaps the greatest competitive cheerleading rivalry in Michigan.
They compete against each other for the Downriver League championship then generally are the top two Division 2 teams in the state.
Either Carlson or Allen Park has captured the state title in every year since 2007.
Another chapter was added to the storied rivalry on Saturday, March 7 when Allen Park edged the Marauders a third of a point to capture the trophy at Central Michigan University.
Carlson scored 790.08 points to 790.4 for Allen Park.
“The girls put up pretty big numbers,” Carlson coach Alyssa Tocco said. “They definitely improved on their performances.”
The scant difference between the two teams came in the early rounds.
Carlson outscored the Jaguars 321.9-321.3 in the crucial third round.
“I am proud of us for beating them in Round 3,” Tocco said.
Carlson nearly took the title with a young squad. Jaidyn Cox and Kendra Ochab were the only seniors on the roster.
Airport took third in the state with a score of 779.5.
PREP SWIMMING
Mills leads Mason-Ida
DUNDEE – David Mills won the 200 and 500-yard freestyles and swam on a winning relay to help Erie Mason-Ida take second place in the Michigan Independent Swimming League White Meet Saturday.
Mills went 1:45.59 in the 200 and 4:52.03 in the 500. He paired with Jared Tunison, Mason Reynolds and Brenner Nelson for a winning time of 3:21.39 in the 400 relay.
Mason got seconds from Tunison, Brandon Tross and Bowie Jacobs.
JR Hess of Dundee set a school and pool record in winning the backstrone in :51.46 and also ruled the 50 freestyle. The Vikings went 1-2 in diving with Aaron Brewer and Kylor Freshour. Chandler Gossiaux hit a state-qualifying time in the breaststroke.
Jayce Hay won the butterfly in :55.13 and was second in the individual medley to help Monroe take third place.
“I can’t really put into words how special this season has been,” said Erin Down of Monroe, who was named the league’s Coach of the Year. “We have grown and improved so much. It’s hard to compare where we started to where we finished today.”
Other standouts for the Trojans were Alec Adams, Josh Riggs, Reuben Green, Leo Alcantara and Gabe Alcantara.
Bedford’s Williams excels
MILAN – Parker Williams won the individual medley in 2:06.79 and swam a leg on one the winning 200 relays to lead Bedford to second place in the Michigan Independent Swimming League Blue Meet Saturday.
Ryan Sharkus, Aaron Majewski and Andy Nelson were his teammates on the relay.
Jackson Andrews won diving for the Mules with 351.35 points and Sharkus, Nelson, Majewski, Loris DeFore and Avery Hall finished in the top three for individual events.
Milan’s Alec Markham won the 200 freestyle in 1:53.27 and helped the Big Reds take second in the 200 and 400 relays. His relay partners were Jameson McShane, Tadas Zukuovskis, Dylan Nichols and Cameron Garcia.
COLLEGE WRESTLING
Swiderski takes title
Dundee graduate Casey Swiderski of Oklahoma State was crowned the Big 12 champion at 149 pounds at the Big 12 Meet during the weekend.
Two other Vikings competed in the Big Ten Championships. Braeden Davis of Penn State was seventh at 141 pounds and Stoney Buell of Purdue went 0-2 at 157.
ADULT SOCCER
Silva pours in five
MONROE – Felipe Silva netted five goals to lead Not Fast, Not Furious to a 7-5 win over Atletico on the first day of the Monroe Adult Coed Indoor Spring Soccer League at LevelUp Training Sunday.Steve Bucknor scored two goals for Atletico.
This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Carlson second, Airport third in competitive cheerleading state finals
Reporting by Niles Kruger, The Monroe News / The Monroe News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
