Posted 4/18/01
North Branch High School Speech Team brings home section 2nd place
The North Branch Speech Team competed at the Section 7AA tournament in Hibbing April 7 and came away with the second place trophy for their efforts.
Outstanding performances were turned in by 19 participants at the section level, with 13 North Branch competitors advancing to final round competition.
Following final round action, three local students earned trips to the state competition. Matt Born, Melissa Eberlein and Matt McAuliffe each will compete with their peers at state next Friday, April 20, at Eagan High School.
Born qualified for his efforts in storytelling, and Eberlein for her work with Great Speeches. McAuliffe qualified for the State competition following his performance in Serious Poetry. All three earned second place at sectionals.
Other North Branch performances were turned in by: Courtney Funke, third place and state competition alternate in Extemporaneous Reading; Nikki Hasselbalch and Amy Bauernfeind also qualified as state alternates in Extemporaneous Reading and Informative, respectively, each with fourth place finishes.
Earning fifth place were Char Roethler in Creative Expression, Sara Waldron in Extemporaneous Reading, Anna Driscoll for Great Speeches, Kim Koski in Original Oratory and Evan Boyce in Serious Drama.
Turning in sixth place efforts were Becki Olseen, Discussion, and Brandon Turner in Great Speeches.
Other sectional performers included Amanda Abress and Ariel Becker in Extemporaneous Reading, Emily Gjertson in Creative Expression. Ben McAuliffe competed in Discussion, as did Brian Meskimen. Amber Wald rounded out the North Branch roster with her effort in Storytelling.
Thirteen schools participated in the Section 7AA tournament, with Forest Lake taking top honors. Chisago Lakes and Duluth Denfeld finished third and fourth, respectively, behind the North Branch squad.