Spirit Groups

The Spirit Squads are an integral part of the athletic programs of the University. The Cheerleaders and the Dance Team represent Concordia at all home games for football and basketball. The Cheerleaders travel to games in the Chicagoland area and to some of the distance games. The mascot cheers with the fans at the home football and basketball games. The yell leaders work with the Cheerleaders during basketball season.

Concordia Invitational Tournament (CIT)
The capstone event of the athletic year for the Spirit Squads is the CIT. This basketball tournament involves both men's and women's teams. The Spirit Squads cheer and dance at all of the games where Concordia participates. Every four years, the tournament rotates to our campus. In January of 2005, we hosted the 54th tournament here at Concordia after hosting the 50th ("Golden") Anniversary of CIT back in 2001. This year's tournament was held in Mequon, Wisconsin on Jan. 27-28, 2006.

Until 1975, CIT was a post -season tournament. Since then, the tournament has been held the last weekend of January and includes:

Concordia University Chicago
Concordia University Ann Arbor, Michigan
Concordia University Seward, Nebraska
Concordia University Mequon, Wisconsin

 

Cheerleaders, Dance Teams, pep bands, yell leaders, and mascots have always been an important part of the tournament and add to the excitement and the festivities. In its 55-year history, CIT has grown to be a cherished example of fellowship and spiritual competition.

The pictures to the right show our Cougar cheerleaders (top) and dance team (bottom) participating in the January 2006 festivities in Mequon.