Morris Speech Team shines for 3rd historic season

MORRIS – The Morris Community High School speech team has completed another historic season, by winning the IHSA Sectional for the third consecutive year and the fourth time in its history.

Last year, the team had to compete in masks after competing in a virtual season in 2020. The masks proved to be difficult in a competition where facial expression is a factor. However, the team persevered and won the IHSA sectionals for two years in a row.

The team continued its winning streak by winning first place at the IHSA Sectional and taking nine events to the state.

At sectionals, Morris received first place finishes from Sofia Best in Orginal Oratory, and Haven Perdomo in Humorous Interpretation; second place finishes from Angela Georgaklis and Faith Ragan in Dramatic Duet Acting, Faith Ragan in Prose Reading, Haven Perdomo in Special Occasion Speaking, Joy Dudley in Radio Speaking, Liam Eber and Nicholas Black in Humorous Duet Acting, Liam Eber in Orginal Comedy, and Performance in the Round.

Morris coach Andrea Gustafson watched her team develop their talents throughout the year and said going to state was a “big prize.”

“Speech has so many great things associated with it. But, you know, when students get to say they are a state qualifier in any sport or activity there is a huge honor in that. It’s just a really exciting, fun experience to take students to state and have them represent our school and community.”

At the state competition, Eber, a sophomore, placed seventh in the state for his Orginal Comedy entitled “The Big Heist”, which is about a high school student who signs up for a Theatre Arts class and his journey to finish a project he doesn’t know about.

He said went to state with lower expectations this year, but hoped to be top ten in either of the events he qualified for.

“I ended up getting seventh in OC, so I was really happy about that. So, the only thing I would really change is just maybe pushing it a little harder in finals,” he said.

Best, a senior, performed at state, but didn’t qualify for final rounds in her Orginal Oratory entitled “The Power of Pink” and discusses how society demonizes hyper-feminity.

“I would have loved to make finals, but that didn’t happen. But, I am still proud of what I did. Because I felt like they were some of the best performances I had given all season and even if the judges didn’t agree, I felt really good about them.”

Dudley, a senior, performed in Radio Speaking, a competition where a student is handed a packet of current news and has 45 minutes to turn it into a broadcast. Her goal at the state was to beat her older sibling.

“My sibling has the best finish in radio in the school-they finished third at state. So, last year I finished fourth. I really wanted to beat them and unfortunately, I didn’t do that. But, I’m not sure I would change anything,” she said.

Morris High School Superintendent Craig Ortiz said that the speech team students put in a tremendous number of hours preparing for their events and it shows in the accomplishments of the team.

“The kids have a lot to live up to each year in terms of past achievements, and they do not disappoint,” he said.

The Morris Speech Team State Recognization Assembly will be held on March 3 at 2:20 p.m. in the Morris High School Gymnasium.