October, 1997. After losing nearly half of the varsity team from 1996-97, FHS speech and debate looked to be in a rebuilding year. The “old guard” of the speech and debate team was gone and supposedly so was any chance of a state title. It the next few months, Flathead defeated perennial favorite Bozeman twice and is neck-and-neck for the state title with Bozeman. Now, the Flathead team is primed for the final showdown with arch-rival Bozeman starting today at the state tournament in Helena. “It was a pretty remarkable year,” said Flathead head speech coach Greg Adkins. “We started slow, to be honest. But we came on, we beat Bozeman, and now we’re cautiously optimistic.” The season was not without its down points. In November, the FHS team attended a tournament in Polson — a tournament that resulted in a Flathead win (because they were the only AA school attending) despite what members of the team called a weak performance. According to Adkins, the tournament was a turning point for the team and for the season. “We were very worried,” said Adkins. “Our veterans realized they had to step it up.” And step it up they did. Following the meet in Polson, Flathead went to Butte and beat Bozeman for the first time all season. Since then, Flathead has won two of five decisions with Bozeman with wins in Missoula and Butte, and taking second in Great Falls, Billings and Bozeman. Adkins believes that the surprising year has come as a result of a balanced team and a large number of first-year seniors who have had great success. Those first-year seniors include Missy Nauslar and Allison Fitzpatrick in Memorized Public Address, Alyson Short and Jenny Bocksnick in Original Oratory and Travis Smith in Policy Debate . “I see so much talent on the team,” said Nauslar, who was the team’s leading points-per-meet scorer. “If everybody lived up to the talent we have, we’ll clean house.” This year’s team has added confidence from the wins versus Bozeman — a confidence that could prove crucial in the coming days. “We’ve beat Bozeman twice now,” said sophomore debater Michael Greig. “We’ve done the work. Now we’ve got to show them what it’s all about.” “If we work up to our abilities, Bozeman wouldn’t have a chance,” said Nauslar. “After the meet, I can see everyone placing and all 42 members of the team up on stage. ” |
