Speech winners at Walker Senior co-captain Gemma Shaffer earned the second place medal in Storytelling to lead the Staples Motley Speech Team award winners in the Walker Speech Tournament Saturday, March 6.

Other Cardinal finalists were Emma Motl, who finished sixth in Original Oratory and Katie Stone, who finished seventh in discussion.

The Walker tournament was the most challenging of the season, with 683 students from 25 schools competing. The Cardinal team finished in 15th place.

Senior Lauren Jeziorski, the only entry from the Pillager speech team, accompanied the Cardinal speech team and earned the fifth place medal in Original Oratory.

Coaches Bob Shaffer and Don Sanda were taking nine speech students March 11 to compete in the Northern Lights District National Forensic League Qualifying Tournament at Itasca Community College in Grand Rapids. Competition will continue through Saturday morning.

On March 13, coach Penny Olsen will take other speech team members who aren’t in the middle school musical to compete in an invitational tournament in Underwood.

Cardinal speech students who won awards in the WHA Speech tournament in Walker are, from left, Gemma Shaffer, Emma Motl and Katie Stone. (Photo by Don Sanda)