Pohlen, Fischer, Harms earn berths in state speech tourney

Despite having one of the smaller teams in the Section 3A meet, Minneota came up big on Saturday in Redwood Falls.
The Vikings will send three individuals to the Class A State Speech Meet on Saturday, April 29 at Eastview High School in Apple Valley.
Five team members reached the finals in their respective categories. Cora Fischer emerged as the second-place winner in Great Speeches. while Wyatt Pohlen was third in Discussion and Noah Harms was third in Humorous.
This will be the first state trip for each of those three.
Minneota coach Kim Gades wasn't surprised to see the three team members qualify for state.
"They have worked hard all season and have consistently been placing in the top six at tournaments," she said. "It’s funny, because people asked me how many I thought we’d get to state and I had been saying 0-6 (six being the total number of competitors Minneota had at sections). Speech is so subjective and some of the categories our kids compete in also have changing topics or stories like disco, storytelling, extemporaneous speaking, etc. So, it truly is dependent on the day, the round, and the judge. I am extremely happy and proud of how the team did on Saturday."
Joe Voit also earned a spot in the finals of Extemporaneous Speaking and finished in fifth place. Melanie Engels finished sixth in Storytelling.
Minneota placed seventh out of the 19 teams competing. Russell-Tyler-Ruthton won the meet with 45 points. Pohlen, a sophomore, is the first Minneota speech member to qualify for the state tournament in Discussion since 2015.
"He has been a hard worker and always strives to do his best," said Gades. "He takes what judges have shared with him and applied to his work in his category."
This year's Discussion category is "Global Environmental Issues: What is the Condition of our Planet?" The state committee creates main points and subpoints under each of four sections of the topic. This year the main points are land, air, water, and people and how they relate to and impact environmental issues.
Fischer, a junior, used "A Whisper of AIDS" as her Great Speech this season. It was given at the Republican National Convention in 1992.
"Cora is the first competitor in Great Speeches that I've coached to make it to the state tournament," Gades noted.
In Great Speeches, students take a speech that was previously given before an audience and are asked to break it down into an analysis.
“Competitors must establish and defend why it is a great speech that stands the test of time,” Gades explained.
In "A Whisper of AIDS", the resounding message of empathy, kindness, and caring for your fellow man —no matter the circumstances — is important while also bringing awareness to the HIV/AIDS.
Harms, a freshman, had a challenging piece this season. He chose "008" by Herb Duncan, which follows the trials and capture of James Bond's replacement, who turns out to be Carl from Taco Grande.
"With many characters, scenes, and transitions from the past to the present, Noah has had his work cut out for him," Gades said. "He never shied away from the challenge and has continued to work hard and perfect his presentation throughout the season."