MANILA, Philippines—Arellano University surpassed rival University of Perpetual Help for the title in the NCAA Season 94 cheerleading competition Thursday at Mall of Asia Arena.
Performing to the tune of the 90s, the Chief Squad shrugged off a few mistakes and dazzled with high-risk stunts to earn 229.5 points en route to their three-peat.
The Chief Squad now has four cheerleading titles but still lag behind Perpetual, which has nine.
“Although we have some minor errors but I saw the heart of a champion team, that’s why we still perform well,” said AU coach Lucky San Juan in Filipino.
The Perps Squad came in as the first runners-up for the third straight time after costly errors got them a 229.5-point mark.
San Juan added that their mastery of the more difficult stunts helped them to the title.
“I think it was the degree of difficulty that helped us win. We had to the more difficult stunts,” he said.
The Mapua Cheerleading Cardinals, the inaugural champions in 2005, came in at third after their clean routine earned them 211.5 points.
Colegio de San Juan de Letran saw instant dividends after recruiting 10 students from former national cheerleading champion Central Colleges of the Philippines, finishing in fourth place after a ninth-place finish in 2018.