It appears that if a competitor is from the norhtwest region of Illinois then you might as well count out the chance of finishing above 5th. That is if you even make the finals. I know that there isn't a conspiracy against the local schools, but out of 26 chances to get to the finals, only four made it from the Rock Island sectional. The highest finish was a fifth place for Anna Ruch in Dramatic Interpretation and a fifth for Kadie Threloff of DeKalb in Oratorical Declamation, as well as a 6th for Freeport's Kayla Kluck in the same category. Katie Quittschrieber in Radio Speaking. The three top team finishers from Rock Island scored a grand total of SIX points in the entire competition.
I would venture that either the sectional was very week, or that the Chicago suburban teams have much stronger programs or higher profile reputations that preceed them. I would say that from what I saw and heard at the Rock Island sectional the teams were very competitive.
We'll see what happens next year when many of the local seniors graduate. The area teams are to be congratulated on having such an outstanding season. Nine categories represented for Freeport and six for Eastland-Pearl City. That is still quite an accomplishment.
3 comments:
Actually there were five from the Rock Island Sectional that made it to state finals. Mark Stevens of Geneseo went on to finsih 2nd in Radio Speaking. That kind of puts a damper on your little conspiracy theory.
You are correct. I inadvertently overlooked Mark from Geneseo. He did a fantastic job at the sectionals and I didn't see his name or didn't recognize it for the state speech finals. He is to be congratulated for his excellent tournament.
After speaking with several of the coaches, there is definitely a difference in what the Chicago area judges and those from downstate are looking for compared to the Northwest region. Just ask DeKalb. There also is no standardized requirements for judges which leads to a wide variety of interpretation. Surrounding states do have a standardized process.
Finally, I didn't honestly think there was a conspiracy, but there was indeed a discrepancy in how the schools fared in the state tournament and the number of finalists that were represented by the different sections of the state.
Hello, this reply is quite late, as State Finals were a little over a month ago, nevertheless, I wanted to reply. This is the same Kadie Threloff whom you mentioned in this blog. I understand your frustration, and I think many people felt the same way. Sadly, very few Rock Island competiters placed in state finals, which to be quite honest, suprised me quite a bit. As you mentioned to Mr. Witzel, just look at DeKalb. We brought 12 of 14 events, the strongest team in recent history, and we were not alone with having such a strong team. However, as I witnessed over and over again, it is truly very difficult for non-suburbian teams to compete with larger, better funded teams, including 3 consecutive year team champions, Downers Grove South and others. Making it to Oak Lawn for the state competition is an incredible feat for every person and every team there, no matter final scores.
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