Repeat champ paces Whitefish at state speech

The Daily Inter Lake

State champions in Policy Debate and Original Oratory paced Whitefish High School to second place in team standings over the weekend at the Class A Speech, Debate and Drama Tournament in Butte.

Junior Joe Mazur and senior Caitlin Caltabiono won the state title in Policy Debate. Sophomore Jessie Mazur won the championship in Original Oratory.

It was the second straight debate title for Joe Mazur and the first state title for his sister Jessie.

Other state placewinners for Whitefish were:

- Serious Oral Interpretation: 2. Jennifer Vail.

- Memorized Public Address: 3. Tyler Schiff; 6. John Joern.

- Extemporaneous Speaking: 3. Patrick McGunagle

- Lincoln-Douglas Debate: 5. Ellen Scheffer, 6. Josh Schott.

Columbia Falls, with a strong showing in speech events, won the Class A team title with 134 points. Whitefish had 94 points.

It was the fourth state championship in a row for Columbia Falls and the school's eighth state title in the past 10 years.

Columbia Falls had one individual champion - Taylor Hopkins in Impromptu Speaking - among the 17 speakers who placed at state.

In Class AA, Flathead High School returned to the top after a one-year absence.

Flathead edged Bozeman by 1.5 points for the team sweepstakes trophy at the Class AA speech and debate meet. Glacier High School was third.

It marked the seventh time in eight years that Flathead speakers and debaters won the Class AA championship.

Flathead individual state champions included Cailin Rogers in Legislative Debate, Casey Brown in both Humorous Oral Interpretation and Serious Oral Interpretation and Dawson Lynch in Memorized Public Address.

Glacier had one individual state champion, Matt Schwager in Extemporaneous Speaking.