Luverne High School speech team captured the first-place team trophy Saturday at the Vikings Invitational in Minneota.
Twenty-five Cardinals competed at the event with three students double-entered at the meet, which featured 200 other speakers in three rounds of competition.
Categories, participants and awards are as follows:
•Creative expression: Meagan Hansen, fourth.
•Discussion: Alexa Chesley, first; Melanie Rittenhouse, ribbon.
•Dramatic duo: Josie Golla and Mia Wenzel, fifth.
•Extemporaneous reading: Nicole Hoogland, third.
•Extemporaneous speaking: Chance Tunnissen, first; Parker Carbonneau, fourth.
•Great speeches: Rylee Anderson, fourth.
•Humorous: Seno Chanthalangsy, second; Luke Thorson, fifth.
•Original oratory: Sophia Lanoue, fifth; Katherine Pizel, ribbon.
•Prose: Josie Golla, fifth.
•Storytelling: Xavier Carbonneau, second; Hannah Baker, third; Jonah Louwagie, fourth.
Junior Josie Golla, sophomore Mia Wenzel and junior Destiny Matthiesen competed in the two-person events in addition to their individual categories.
“Although it may sound contradictory, trying a different category can help one improve in differentiation of movement or use of voice that can often become repetitive or stale in a category they have done for several years,” said coach Caroline Thorson. “Coach (Gavin) Folkestad and I are excited to see how this helps them grow.”
Golla and Wenzel competed in dramatic duo as well as individually in prose and poetry respectively.
Matthiesen and her brother, Chase (a seventh-grader who is competing in his first year), were also in dramatic duo. Destiny competed in extemporaneous reading, which she has excelled in over the years, according to Thorson.
However, competing in two events means double the practice and double the memorization.
“Double-entering isn’t for everyone,” Thorson added. “The student has to be able to handle the responsibility of double the work and the stress of competing back-to-back in rounds where he/she has to compete and get to his/her room to perform, sometimes immediately upon arrival.”
Luverne hosts its own speech invitational Saturday at the middle-high school. The event is open to the public.