Speech, debate, welcomes new coach

The Columbia Falls speech and debate team will look to take an unprecedented 16th straight state A title as the season kicks off in the coming weeks. It will also have a new head coach at the helm.

Blake Ladenburg, a Columbia Falls native, graduate and state champion himself, is the new head coach. Ladenburg takes the helm from longtime coach Tara Norick.

He graduated from Columbia Falls in 2013 and was a state champion his junior year in memorized public address. He’s stayed with the program since high school — for two years while attending college in Walla Walla, Washington, he volunteered as an assistant coach, making the drive from Walla Walla to the meets and then driving back home again.

He wasn’t able to do that his junior and senior years of college but after he graduated he got a job at Columbia Falls High School as a college and career coordinator and was an assistant under Norick the past two seasons.

Today, he’s the advisor for the Gear Up program at Flathead Valley Community College.

This year’s team currently has 34 members, including 21 returning members, including seven seniors that were on last year’s squad as well.

The team should be solid.

“We have 11 students returning who placed at state last year and two of those students placed in two events, so 13 placing entries returning,” he said.

Those who placed last year and returning are Calie Jo Johnson, Tre Finley, Emma Stephens, Finley Sundberg, Raphe Salmon, Eddie Chisholm and Damon Morris in debate and in speech Aiden Judge, Julia Sowerwine, Griffin Conger, and Chloe Coberley.

Due to coronavirus concerns, it looks like this year’s meets will be done virtually via the Internet. There is a silver lining to all of that. Unlike athletic sports, a person can still compete even if they’re under quarantine, as all they need is a computer of some sort and a fairly fast Internet connection.

“They’re ready to give it their all despite the difficult circumstances,” Ladenburg noted.

The team has had success over the years not because it necessarily racks up the state championships — last year it only had one state champ — but because it has students willing to compete, and place, in all the categories.

That adds up to points, Ladenburg noted.

“I give a lot of credit to the coaches who have inspired kids to give it their all every year,” he said.

Ladenburg is assisted this year by debate coach Mikel Knutson, Ali Majors in interpretative speech and Jody Shipper, who is a short prep coach.

Shipper is an attorney with the Food and Drug Administration.

The first meet is in the first week of December, but the actual format hasn’t been finalized by the Montana High School Association.