The Plymouth High School Speech Team competed in the Northwest Indiana National Qualification tournament over the weekend and advanced students to the NSDA National Tournament that will be held in Salt Lake City, Utah in June. While students can qualify in more than one event, they must choose only one event for the national tournament. Plymouth High School students who qualified include:
• Emily McKenzie 1st in Informative Speaking
• Emily McKenzie 2nd in Congress (choosing Informative)
• Garrett Garver 1st in Congress
• Garrett Garver 2nd in USA Extemp (choosing US Extemp)
• Yailin Rodriguez 1st in Programmed Oral Interpretation
• Yailin Rodriguez & Elizabeth Polstra 3rd in Memorized Duo (choosing Duo)
• Jillian Smith 1st in Original Oratory
• Lexi Ramirez 2nd in Programmed Oral Interp
• Bridget Schafer 3rd in Humor
Other PHS finalists and alternates by event included the following:
• Elizabeth Polstra and Jillian Smith in Drama
• Meghan Egierski in Humor
• James Doody and Meghan Egierski
• Trevor Pletcher and Lexi Ramirez in Duo Interpretation
• Jack Garner in USA Extemporaneous speaking
• Elizabeth Szalay in Informative
Twenty-seven members of the team will leave for the State finals at Fishers High School after school on Thursday and plan to return with another top finish after awards on Saturday!
Here are the final rankings for the PHS students who did not qualify to the national tournament.
• Elizabeth Szalay was 3rd in Informative (alternate to nationals)
• Meghan Egierski was 4th in Humor (alternate to nationals)
• James Doody and Meghan Egierski were 4th in Duo (alternate to nationals)
• Trevor Pletcher and Lexi Ramires were 5th in Duo
• Jillian Smith was 5th in Drama
• Elizabeth Polstra was 6th in Drama
• Jack Garner was 6th in USA Extemp
In other Plymouth High School Speech and Debate news PHS was recognized for receiving the National Speech and Debate Association Leading Chapter Award! According to a letter received from the National Speech & Debate Association NSDA, “This is the highest honor the Association can bestow upon a chapter. Only one school in each district attains this designation each year, and it must wait at least five years before being eligible again. Out of more than 3,000 schools nationwide, Plymouth High School is one of only 110 to receive the Leading Chapter Award.”
Photo:
(Back Row Standing L to R):
Bridget Schafer, Garrett Garver, Lexi Ramirez
(L to R): Jillian Smith, Emily McKenzie, Yailin Rodriguez, Elizabeth Polstra
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