The OLSH Speech & Debate team began competition in late October and team members have placed in the top 6 in a variety of categories at each local tournament attended so far. Senior Chloe Walz has earned three bids to compete in poetry at the Pennsylvania High School Speech League (PHSSL) State Tournament based on her performances at tournaments so far this year. Students earn bids for top placement depending on the number of students and schools competing in each event. The State Tournament is held in March at Bloomsburg University.
Tournaments this year have been a mix of formats. Some tournaments have operated in person and students have adapted to wearing a mask while speaking, learning to articulate clearly and use eye contact and hand gestures to enhance their performance. Other tournaments have been virtual, with students competing either live, using a platform similar to Zoom, or asynchronous, sharing a video file of their performance. Still other tournaments offer multiple formats, allowing students to enter more than one category or event in one tournament. The team has been working hard to perfect their performances as they prepare for state and national qualifiers in late February and early March.
Speech & Debate Team Results
USC Novice Tournament
Duo Interp - 2nd place (Addy V. '25 & Gianni D. '25)
Moon Tournament
Prose - 6th place (Karolina L. '23)
Poetry - 3rd place (Chloe W. '22)
Poetry - 6th place (Meghan C. '24)
Duo Interp - 2nd place (Oliva M. '23 & Clare M. '23)
Shady Side Academy Tournament
Humorous Interp - 3rd place (Bernie K. '22)
Poetry - 5th place (Katarina K. '22)
Team Pittsburgh Winter Invitational
Poetry - 2nd place (Chloe W. '22)
Humorous Interp - 5th place (Bernie K. '22)
North Catholic Tournament
Program Oral Interp - 2nd place (Chloe W. '22)
Humorous Interp - 4th place (Bernie K. '22)
Sparkle Season Spectacular
Prose - 1st place (Karolina L. '23)
Duo Interp - 3rd place (Olivia M. '23 & Clare M. '23)
Poetry - 1st place (Chloe W. '22)
Poetry - 3rd place (Katarina K. '22)
Dramatic Performance - 5th place (Bernie K. '22)
North Allegheny Invitational
Program Oral Interp - 3rd place (Chloe W. '22)
Humorous Interp - 6th place (Bernie K. '22)
Sterner Dalmasse Steel City Classic
Poetry - 4th place (Chloe W. '22)
Poetry - 6th place (Katarina K. '23)
Humorous Interp - 3rd place (Bernie K. '22)
Dramatic Interp - 6th place (Katarina K. 23)