On Saturday, March 29, the New York Mills speech team competed at the Perham Jacket Classic. This was the team’s last “regular season” invitational. 

On Saturday, April 5, the team will compete at the MSHSL Subsection 23A tournament hosted in Pequot Lakes. Only the top six speakers in each event will advance to the Section 6A tournament. Please take time to wish them luck, as these upcoming MSHSL elimination tournaments are stressful, emotional, and what they’ve been preparing for since practice started in December. Individual awards from the Perham Jacket Classic went to:

• Payton Lausten – second place in Prose with her Interpretation of Taylor Jenkin Reid’s New York Times Bestselling Novel The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

• Elijah Geiser – second place in Poetry with his interpretation of the poem “Ren” by Ren Gills.

• Soren Stout – third place in Discussion (this year’s discussion tasks surround the nature of work post-pandemic).

• Brooke Sonsalla – sixth place in Discussion (this year’s discussion tasks surround the nature of work post-pandemic) and second place in Honor Original Oratory with the persuasive speech she wrote to shed light on how first responders silently struggle with PTSD and advocate for increased awareness and support.

• Makenna Brunko – first place in Novice Poetry and 5th Place in Honor Poetry with a collection of poems about the devastating consequences of bullying in high school. 

• Elli Koshenina – third place in Novice Drama with her interpretation of Deborah Karczeski’s monologue, Sassy and the Boss.