The Crookston High School Speech Team is sending three individuals to the Class A Speech State Tournament this Saturday, April 23, down in Apple Valley, Minnesota. Senior George French will be competing in Humorous Interpretation after taking 3rd place at the Section 8A Tournament, and Juniors Samantha Rezac and Zara Baig will be participating as a team in Duo Interpretation after securing a 1st place finish in the Section Tournament. “I see all that these students do in speech and all the other activities and I’m incredibly proud of the work and commitment they put into it,” said Crookston High School Speech Coach Brandon Adams. “It’s a lot of commitment and can be time-consuming so to see them succeed after all their effort is terrific.”
Taking a look closer at how each of them got started in speech, for George French, it’s been something he’s always thought about participating in since he was little. “My mom was a Speech competitor as was my sister,” said French. “So that got me involved and I just ran with it.”
French hasn’t gone to State before and has been competing in Speech since the 7th grade. He has been competing in the Humorous Interpretation category his entire time while in Speech and is happy to have finally achieved a state berth. He noted how grateful he is for all the memories over the years and his continued growth. “Trying to improve every single has always been my goal since I’ve started and I’ve really enjoyed the experiences it’s brought me,” said French. “I’ve learned a lot during my time in Speech and it’s been something that has been a great benefit to me.”
One of the things that stands out about all the students participating in the Art programs at the Crookston High School, is just how much they do throughout the school year. French got to show his versatility a few weeks ago, as he had a very busy weekend earlier in April. He was playing a key role in the High School’s Musical “Godspell” and the performances happened to align with when the Section 8A Speech Tournament was taking place. French had no intention of missing out on either of the events, so he kept plenty busy over the course of a few days. “It was a crazy week,” said French. “I was going from “Godspell” to Speech and then back to “Godspell” so I was all over the place but overall still very happy I was able to do all of it and with how I performed at sections.”
Both Rezac and Baig were also in the Musical “Godspell” with major roles and they re-iterated French’s comments regarding how busy the group was and has been with all the different performances they’ve recently put together. “That entire week was just really hard,” said Baig. “I was kind of scared a few times that week and let’s just say there wasn’t a lot of sleep that week.” Rezac added, “It was a lot trying to memorize everything for “Godspell” as well as memorize everything for our speech script. There was a lot of confusion and as Zara mentioned, there wasn’t a lot of sleep that week.”
On top of being involved with the Speech team and the musical “Godspell”, all three also were a part of the High School’s One-Act play earlier this year “Brian the Comet” and have all shared many experiences together through the Art programs. Assistant Speech Coach Phyllis Hagen believes it’s students like these three that have put the High School’s Art programs in a position to be successful. “This has been such a fun and committed group to work with,” said Assistant Speech Coach Phyllis Hagen. “We’ve had a lot of laughs and a lot of fun. They are very talented kids.” Coach Brandon Adams added, “It is exciting to see where we’re back at for Speech, and I’m excited to see what Crookston High School does for Speech in the upcoming years as well.”
For Zara Baig in particular, she says the Art side of things has always been something she’s always enjoyed doing. “For me, it’s something I’ve just always enjoyed,” said Baig. “Especially with Speech and doing Humorous Duo, that’s been a lot of fun because I like to make people laugh and know that they’re enjoying what they’re either hearing or watching.”
Turning the attention back to what is to come this upcoming weekend at the Minnesota State Class A Speech Tournament, both Baig and Rezac have participated in a Speech State Tournament before, but this is the first time they will be competing together as a team. According to both of them, it’s a challenge their looking forward to. “I know that Samantha has competed in duos before, but this is my first time competing in the category,” said Baig. “It was a little challenging and different at first but it’s something you do get used to over time.” Rezac agreed with Baig saying. “Once we got used to each other’s styles and energy we just continued to build that chemistry and it’s gotten us to where we are.”
While the two would love to take home some hardware at the State competition, they know to soak in the weekend and all the moments that come with it. “We were both in the State Tournament last year, but it was all online,” said Rezac. “So, I’m a little nervous to compete at an in-person event but it should be a lot of fun and we will make the most of it. It’s very exciting to get this opportunity. Baig would add. “I think the biggest thing for me is just that we go into our Speech and have success but that we can both say afterward we did our best no matter what happens.”
The three students will receive a State Send-Off tomorrow at 9:55 a.m. at the Crookston High School. They will also get the opportunity to share their speeches with the entire school and talk about their categories. The last Crookston High School Student to be crowned a Speech State Champion was Jesi Mullins in 2004. Mullins won the category of Storytelling and managed to also win the State Championship the year before in 2003.
The top three in each category during the Section Tournaments advance to the State Tournament, so there will be plenty of competition for the three Pirate participants. While French, Baig, and Rezac will all have the chance at a State Championship this weekend, Speech Coach Brandon Adams is hopeful they just enjoy the event and don’t take any of it for granted. “Of course, I want them to do as well as they can, but I also want them to be proud of how much they’ve accomplished and how far they’ve already made it,” said Crookston High School Speech Coach Brandon Adams. “Hopefully, they can have some success this weekend but more importantly enjoy it.”
