Speech team takes home sweepstakes award

The Carbon County School District No. 2 Speech Team brought home another trophy two weeks ago.

The team returned from the Star Valley meet in Afton with the 1A/2A Sweepstakes Trophy.

Thursday night, before the Star Valley meet, the team members sat around the dinner table and thanked each other for their contribution to the team, head coach Brenda Ostendorf said.

“A team willing to compliment each member significantly demonstrates solidarity within a team, and such a commitment is demonstrated by results,” Ostendorf said.

Comments received from the judges were as follows:

Kaylyn Wessel - fourth place Drama - “Very believable - made me almost cry.”

Geoff Page and Colton Woolfolk - second place Duet - “They were animated and appealing with good energy.”

Becca Treat and Kaylyn Wessel - first place - Duet - “Timing was impeccable. Made well-known story interesting and fresh.”

Jacob Dickinson and Taylor Russell - novice Duet - “Great voices! You two make great old men - I can see it!”

Amber Adams - fourth place Poetry - “Beautiful voice!”

Aleck Freeman - semi-finalist Poetry - “Wow! Your delivery was awesome!”

Leam Engle - semi-finalist novice Humor - “Funny! You have a great deal of talent waiting to emerge.”

Last weekend, the speech team played host along the with Rawlins Speech team at the Rawlins Outlaw and Debate meet at Rawlins High School.

Unlike other extra curricular activities, the speech team excuses itself from the competition at home and instead works to ensure the judges turn in their ballots, students are on schedule for the speech/debate and serve as hosts to the other teams.

The home speech teams are also responsible for asking people in the community to judge.

Several community members from Rawlins, Saratoga, Bairoil and Hanna volunteered to judge at the meet.

“The judges were so impressed with the caliber of student performances from Wyoming schools,” Ostendorf said. Several judges asked if they could return to watch the awards ceremony at the conclusion of the meet.

“The epitome of hosting the meet emerged during the awards ceremony when two teams, Rawlins and Saratoga, rose up from the orchestra pit while standing on a lift stage platform as the song ‘We are the Champions’ announced their arrival,” Ostendorf said.

Each team member held a frozen pose, according to Ostendorf, until the music stopped. They went to an assigned placement rotating between the disribution or announcement of awards.