Kalispell kicks off speech season Saturday
The Daily Inter Lake
The Flathead High speech and debate team begins the 2006-07 season Saturday by hosting the annual Kalispell Kick-Off speech and debate tournament.
Flathead has won four consecutive Montana AA championships, eight in the past nine years. The team brought home the state championship 17 times, a Montana Class AA record.
Nearly 300 students will participate in the kickoff. Bigfork, Browning, Corvallis, Cut Bank, Hamilton, Harlem, Missoula Sentinel, Stevensville, Whitefish, Eureka and Libby will join Flathead, Flathead JV and the Flathead freshman teams.
Conflicts with other school activities means that only about 70 percent of the Flathead team will compete.
Despite his disappointment with missing many of the team's key competitors, coach Greg Adkins said this will open opportunities for new students and those being considered for the varsity team.
Once again, more than 200 hundred students are trying out for the Flathead team.
The 200-260 students who have come out for speech and debate every year for the past decade, Adkins said, are pulled in by the team's tradition, success and a healthy dose of recruitment from returnees and coaching staff.
Treza Hirsch, a two-time national qualifier in Extemporaneous Speaking, is the top returner for Flathead this season. Hirsch plans to compete again in Extemp and Impromptu.
Other national qualifiers returning for their senior season are interpretive event competitors Jesse Brenneman, Ken Grinde and Josh Kelly.
Adkins also has high hopes for seniors Kory Johnson, Nicole Allen, Sara Ebert, Josh Henning, Neil Hilton, Evan Fricke, Katie Seidel, Brice Lubitz and Mara Mercer. He's also counting on successful seasons for underclassmen Annika Heinle, Chante' Cox, Seth Pleasants, Dan Browne, Ian Twamley, Victoria Zimmer and Cailin Rogers and many newcomers.
"Every year is a battle," he said. "Not one of the eight recent championships came without dedication and discipline and a little luck. There is no reason this team cannot compete for another state championship."
He expects Bozeman to be Flathead's prime rival again this season, but said the state's Class AA teams are coming more into balance with one another. Missoula Sentinel, Helena, Great Falls, Billings Skyview, Billings West, Billings Senior and Butte have good programs, he said.
The Flathead coaching staff has gone through some transition again this year.
Longtime assistant coach Sean O'Donnell is not coaching this season, but longtime assistant coach Ivanna Fritz returns after spending a one-year hiatus as the debate coach at Billings West.
"You don't replace a coach like Sean," Adkins said. "Sean is a great man, a great motivator. His squads were simply the best. I hope that Sean returns to coach at Flathead High in the near future. On the other hand, I am so thrilled that Ivanna is back. She is a tremendous coach and her leadership was missed last season."
Adkins will coach Serious and Duo Interp; Fritz will coach Legislative Debate, Impromptu and Extemporaneous Speaking. Also back as coaches are Kerrie Halvorson in Expository and Memorized Public Address, Lee Huestis in Lincoln Douglas Debate, Sarah Langlois in Policy Debate and Wendy Putzler in Oratory and Humorous Interpretation.
Kala (French) Lougheed, Rob Ford, Vicky Hyde, Jenna Nichols, Josh Munro and Sandra Vashro will coach the junior varsity and freshman teams.
Flathead will host the State AA tournament at the end of January, so the annual Flathead Invitational in November has been canceled.