18 qualify for national speech meet
The Daily Inter Lake
Eighteen Kalispell students will represent Montana at the National Forensic League Speech and Debate Tournament in June — provided they can raise the money to get there.
Those students, split evenly between Flathead and Glacier high schools, qualified over the weekend for the national meet at the Montana National Forensic League District Tournament in Bozeman.
Nine students from Glacier, the state champion team, qualified for the national tournament. Nine from Flathead, which took second at state, qualified.
“We had a great tournament, and it was a perfect ending to a really great year,” head coach Karen Downes said.
In team sweepstakes, Bozeman High School, which qualified eight students for nationals, took first. Glacier came in second and Flathead finished third.
Those sweepstakes are scored “radically different” from the usual scoring that governs Montana speech and debate events, Glacier head coach Greg Adkins said. The tournament also differs from regular season meets in that teams only send their top competitors — those who are willing to extend their practices into the summer, should they qualify for the national competition.
“I am really proud of our kids and our team,” Adkins said. “This is a remarkable amount of students from our team and from the Kalispell Public Schools. Eighteen kids from our school district is unbelievable!”
Several Columbia Falls High School students competed in the meet as well. While none qualified for the national tournament as competitors or alternates, some scored well and several made the semifinal round — an impressive achievement at a tournament that featured the top students from Class AA, A, B and C schools from across the state.
“It’s a lot of competition and it’s the best competition,” said Tara Norick, head coach of the Class A state champion Columbia Falls team.
From Columbia Falls, Jesse Flickinger placed sixth in Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking. Only the top two students in that event qualified for nationals.
Flickinger was a semifinalist in Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking, as was Chance Morine. Natalie Law made the semifinal round in Foreign Extemporaneous and Original Oratory; Jennifer Jurva was also a semifinalist in Oratory. Hannah Brinton made semifinals in Humorous Interpretation.
Becky Griffith and Mason Gedlaman placed in the top 10 in Policy Debate, and Mary Gross and Allison Foust ranked in the top 15 in that event.
National qualifiers from Flathead include Sam Watson in Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Kelly Hendrix and Aryn Phillips in Public Forum Debate, Accacia Gardner in Dramatic Interpretation, Natalie Griffin and Peter Hoag in Duo Interpretation, Jasmine Carlson in Congressional Debate-Senate, and Barrie Sugarman in Congressional Debate-House. Hannah Anderson qualified in Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking and in Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking but may only compete in one event; she is listed as a competitor under the former event.
Flathead also had five first alternates: Zac Parker in Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Bri Boozel in Dramatic Interpretation, Danny Power in Humorous Interpretation, Elena Musz in Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking and Hannah Wilson in Congressional Debate-Senate. Peter Hoag was a finalist in Dramatic Interpretation.
Glacier High School’s national qualifiers are Quinn Maroney in Original Oratory, Hunter Garbacz in Congressional Debate-Senate, Reece Erickson in Congressional Debate-House, Brandon Simpson and Ashley Berger in Policy Debate, Tucker Connell and Logan Hendrix in Public Forum Debate, and Tanner Maroney and Clayton McDougall in Duo Interpretation.
Several Glacier students also qualified as alternates. First alternates include Draylen Askvig and Jesse Davis in Duo Interpretation, Tanner Maroney in Humorous Interpretation, Levi Proctor and Mariah Gladstone in Policy Debate, and Ian Hollander and Flint Martino in Public Forum Debate.
Serena Brosten is a second alternate in Congressional Debate.
Glacier’s third alternates include Ashlee Buller and Elise Byle in Policy Debate and Andora Tutvedt in Congressional Debate. Allison Woodruff was a finalist in Oratory.
Now, Adkins said, qualifiers have to get down to the business of fundraising. There is no money in the regular school budget for the national tournament, so students must raise their own funds for the trip.
Adkins estimated it would cost about $9,000 for Glacier’s team to travel, which means Kalispell students need to raise about $18,000 to make it to the national meet in Dallas in June.
Those interested in donating to Glacier’s team should contact Adkins at school at 758-8668. To help Flathead’s national qualifiers, call Downes at 751-3589.