Varsity Speech Competes at Wayne
by Klarissa Norris
The Pierce High varsity speech team competed at the second annual Wayne High/Wayne State Speech Classic on Saturday, February 8, and as a team, Pierce earned the title of runner-up against 23 other schools at the competition.
Head Coach Melissa Legate commented, “This meet had 23 teams and over 400 entries, so to finish with as many medalists as we did was a great accomplishment for the kids. I’m proud of how well they handled the tough competition.”
Only varsity teams compete at the Wayne High/Wayne State Speech Classic, but that didn’t stop the Pierce High speech team from bringing home multiple medals in multiple events.
In duet acting, the duo consisting of Halle Ross and Caydan Retzlaff placed second. Maiya Baumann and Mark Venteicher placed ninth in duet acting. Tanner Kuper placed seventh in entertainment speaking, Emilia Goetsch placed 17th, and Zachary Price placed 18th.
Retzlaff placed first in extemporaneous speaking against 42 other speakers. Mark Venteicher placed third and Shawn Zellmer placed 14th in the same event. In informative speaking, Shelby White placed fifth, and Klarissa Norris placed tenth.
The group consisting of Norris, Baumann, Retzlaff, Ross, and Alyssa Cederburg placed fifth in oral interpretation of drama; the other group of Goetsch, Kuper, and Venteicher placed seventh.
Retzlaff said, “It was good competition, when we compete against Class A schools and do this well I think it just goes to show how talented our team is.”Norris placed 10th in humorous prose, and Baumann placed 16th. In serious prose, Ross placed sixth against 63 other competitors. Hailey Abler placed seventh in persuasive speaking, Shelby White placed 12th, and Larissa Meier placed 15th.
The Pierce speech team’s next competition will be the Wausa Speech Invitational on Saturday, February 15.
