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Flathead, Glacier vie for state speech title

by KRISTI ALBERTSON/Daily Inter Lake
| January 30, 2009 1:00 AM

If local Class AA coaches are correct, this year's state tournament could be one of the most hotly contested competitions in Montana speech and debate history.

Teams from Flathead and Glacier high schools are competing at the State Class AA Speech and Debate tournament in Billings today and Saturday.

It's the first time in years that four teams have a "legitimate chance" at a state title, Glacier head coach Greg Adkins said.

"In the 1970s and '80s it was really just between Billings West and Flathead," he said. "Since the late '80s, it has been a battle between Bozeman and Flathead."

Those two schools still are contenders, Adkins added, but now Glacier and Missoula Sentinel also are in the mix.

This season, Glacier - which last year ended its first speech and debate season with a seventh-place finish at state - has proved itself a legitimate contender, Adkins said. The team has defeated every other AA school at least once this season.

"We are probably years ahead of where most people thought we would be, as far as being competitive," he said.

Flathead, long a speech-and-debate powerhouse, hopes to knock out defending state champion Bozeman High School to reclaim the state title. Before Bozeman's victory in 2008, Flathead had won five straight championships.

"Certainly our goal is to win. We've been working very hard to that end," head coach Kala Lougheed said.

"It's going to be a tight battle. Every tournament for the last few weeks, it's been anybody's game."

Competition has been intense all season, Adkins said.

"We all kind of beat up on each other for points, so it really [is' so hard to predict" a state champion, he said. "I'd have to say that Bozeman (the defending champions' are probably the favorites on paper - but who knows?

"Flathead has a strong team, Sentinel has some amazing students and I think Glacier has a legitimate chance."

At tournaments in which Glacier, Flathead and Bozeman all competed this season, Bozeman won four out of five times. Glacier won the other competition.

The Wolfpack has two first-place finishes this season. Flathead has one. Both schools finished in the top three in six of seven tournaments this season, and each has a fourth-place finish on its resume. Flathead placed ahead of Glacier at four of seven tournaments.

Both teams expect a battle this weekend. Flathead is relying on a balanced attack and hopes to get all its competitors into the top four in every event.

"We really think that's what it's going to take to put the points together to win," Lougheed said.

She anticipates at least a few individual victories.

"It wouldn't be out of the question to have a state champion in every event we're entered in," she said. "That's our dream scenario, of course. We'll probably have three or four.

"We have kids in position to win every event except for Duo" Interpretation, in which Flathead doesn't compete.

Glacier is taking 33 students to the state tournament, 12 of whom won first-place trophies in their respective events this season. Flathead is traveling with about 37 students. Several students from both schools will compete in more than one event.

Round One debate events begin at 2 p.m. today. Speech events start at 3 p.m. today. All events are at Billings West High School.

The tournament will conclude with an awards assembly at 6:30 p.m. Saturday in the high school auditorium.

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com