The Luverne High School speech team is coming off a very successful 2022 season.
They earned their second consecutive Section 3A championship, and a record-setting seven individuals qualified for the state tournament.
Team captains hope history repeats itself this year.
Seniors Grace Ingebretsen and Parker Carbonneau lead the 30-member team.
Both want top team finishes at each tournament, but they know speech is a learning process.
For Ingebretsen, speaking skills is what she’s learned since she joined four years ago. She competes in extemporaneous reading.
“I know that sounds really basic, but speaking was something I used to struggle with a lot,” she said. “I was really nervous standing in front of a crowd and talk with more than just my friends.”
Carbonneau is beginning his sixth year on the speech team.
The state tournament qualifier in extemporaneous speaking wants teammates to avoid unnecessary stress.
“It is easy to get worried before your first speech meet and before a big meet,” he said. “Do your best and try to stay relaxed. You usually turn out better.”
Of the 30 students committed to the speech team, coach Gavin Folkestad indicted eight students are new to the program.
“We’ve enjoyed two consecutive years as Section 3A champions, and I certainly hope to see that continue,” he said. “While we graduated five seniors who competed at last year’s state meet, I don’t see any reason why the success can’t continue.”
A team trophy is the goal at each meet.
“We have the experience and numbers to still be in play at the Big South, sub-sections and sections,” he said. “Windom is our biggest competition at those meets, but they graduated several of their top performers as well.”
Folkestad wants students to gain more than just speaking skills at speech meets.
“It builds lifetime friendships with students from other schools,” he said. “There is no other sport or fine arts activity that I see students celebrate the success of their competitors more than speech.”
This year Folkestad is assisted by first-coach Joseph Stearns.
A fellow English teacher at Luverne Middle-High School, Stearns assists students competing in the public address categories of original oratory, extemporaneous speaking, informative speaking, great speeches and discussion.
“I want the students I work with to explore their own interests in an intellectual way, and I want to help them present their interests to an audience in a well-structured and coherent format,” he said. “I want students to gain confidence in themselves and help them find their own voices.”
Luverne kicks off the 2023 speech season with the first of 11 tournaments Saturday.
Their schedule is as follows:
•Feb. 4 at Worthington.
•Feb. 11 at Luverne.
•Feb. 18, Redwood Valley.
•Feb. 25, Marshall.
•March 4, Montevideo.
•March 16, Big South Conference in Worthington.
•March 18, Russell-Tyler-Ruthton.
•March 25, Minneota.
•March 28, sub-section in Windom.
•April 15, sections in Redwood Valley.
•April 29, state tournament in Apple Valley.