Wildcats win speech divisional title
<p>The Columbia Falls speech and debate team celebrates its Northwest Class A divisional title last week by touching its good luck soccer ball.</p>
The Columbia Falls speech and debate team easily out distanced the competition as it won the Northwest Class A title Jan. 25 in Whitefish.
The Wildcats had first-place finishes from Allison Foust, Meredith Stolte and Colter Norick, Alex Damon, Mason Gedlaman and Mark Hader.
The team racked up a whopping 207 points. Polson was a distant second with 79 points, and Whitefish came in third with 64 points. The top six speakers in each event advance to the state tourney in Hamilton this Friday and Saturday.
The Cats are ready to go, seeking their ninth-straight state Class A title. Hamilton should give the Cats a run for their money — Columbia Falls beat them by the slightest of margin in a tiebreaker earlier this season.
“There is a lot of competition on the west side of the state in speech and debate this year,” coach Tara Norick said. “But we’re well positioned and are continuing to practice hard in preparation for state. The team is well balanced, and I couldn’t do that without a solid coaching staff in all events. My assistant coaches Leslie DiMaio and Kim Gange have built strong competitors in each speech event. We all share a similar team philosophy and love working with this great group of students.”
Here’s the complete Columbia Falls results:
Lincoln Douglas debate
1st Allison Foust
2nd Mary Gross
6th Maddie Mantell
Policy debate
1st Meredith Stolte and Colter Norick
2nd Mara Barnes and Monique Schoech
5th Annabel Conger and Colin Norick
Original oratory
2nd Casey Shea
3rd Lexi Corbett
4th Chloe Foster
Memorized public address
1st Alex Damon
2nd Bailey Duke
3rd Breanna Friar
Impromptu speaking
2nd Mason Gedlaman
3rd Casey Shea
6th Henry Chisholm
Expository speaking
3rd Baylee Brinton
4th Olivia Lewis-Peterson
5th Samantha Gilk
Humorous oral interpretation
1st Mason Gedlaman
2nd Lexi Corbett
3rd Mark Hader
Serious oral interpretation
1st Mark Hader
2nd Bailey Duke
8th Breanna Friar
Extemporaneous speaking
2nd Cody Phillips
4th Henry Chisholm
7th Emily Getts