Speech team expands, 5 state qualifiers return
By Per Peterson
Thanks to the efforts of the coaches, the Tracy Area High School speech team has more than doubled in size since last year and is looking to turn some heads.
The team looks to have a nice blend of youth and experience — and that experience packs a lot of talent.
“Alecia (head coach Peterson) and I came in so late last year we didn’t have time to recruit, so this year we got to recruit, and we have a lot of junior high kids,” said assistant coach John Verly. “That’s really great, and we get to grow with them a lot more and put our stamp on the program. Hopefully it will be a good stamp.”
Verly, who practices with kids in the mornings and early evenings, said the team has some very strong competitors returning this year — including Noah Tiegs, Sarita Hook, MaiDee Vang, Stewart Chisham and PaNhia Vang and Anna Johnston — but he is also excited about the young members who not only have bolstered this year’s roster, but also help paint a bright future for the program
“These young kids have so much potential,” he said. “It’s such a reward watching them grow. It will be exciting to see some of these kids in two, three, four years who are just starting out if they stick with the program.”
The team has five state speech qualifiers returning.
See this week’s Headlight-Herald for more on this article.