The Whitefish High School speech and debate team brought home the hardware at a Bigfork tournament Jan 16 and 18 in the lead up to divisionals this weekend. 

Whitefish finished first with a score of 237 points overall, followed by Columbia Falls High School, which earned 173 points. Hamilton High School took third place. 

“The pieces came together for Whitefish this weekend leading to a tournament win with a solid debate performance and five event championships. However, we cannot afford to be complacent as excellent teams are in the mix," Whitefish head coach Sara Mueller said. 

Taking the Whitefish team to the top were individual champions Shailey Green and Avery McPherson in Public Forum Debate; Logan Covey in Extemporaneous Speaking; Scarlet Burke in Program Oral Interpretation; and Astir Pulsifer in Impromptu Speaking and Original Oratory. 

Columbia Falls head coach Dawn Wheeler also noted the tough competition coming from other Class A teams. 

“Although the finish was not the result our team was aiming for, it reflected the high level of competition between both programs and the fine margins that separate the top teams,” Wheeler said. 

The Columbia Falls team was given a boost by first-place finishers Kajsa Mohr and Kory Moran in Duo Interpretation, Eleanor Smiley in Informative Speaking and Merell Cooley in Memorized Public Address. 

Up next are divisionals on Friday and Saturday in Ronan, which will decide who competes at the Class A state tournament Jan. 30 and 31 in Corvallis. 

“Columbia Falls, Bigfork and other teams in the division won't be resting this week in preparation ...” Mueller said. 

Following are local individual results: 

Policy Debate  

2. Bjorn Bungener and Cohen Gates, Whitefish  

3. Annika Alevizos and Zooey Alevizos, Whitefish  

4. Megan Day and Lily Aveson, Columbia Falls 

5. Andrew Gibbs and Ozel Peters, Whitefish 

6. Kendal Moultral and Cheyanne Dear-Ruel, Columbia Falls 

7. Bailey Combs and Phebe Smiley, Columbia Falls 

Lincoln-Douglas Debate  

2. Anastasia Alevizos, Whitefish 

3. Josie Ekholt, Columbia Falls  

4. Sage Delaloye, Whitefish  

5. Kaya Naumovich, Whitefish 

Public Forum Debate  

1. Shailey Green and Avery McPherson, Whitefish  

2. David Losee and Avery Sorensen, Whitefish  

4. Marcus Mercer and Barrett Clark, Whitefish 

5. Chloe Kinsella and Malakai Shaw, Columbia Falls 

6. Logan Emerson and Sage Petioni, Columbia Falls 

7. Keian Moran and Kaya Carlburg, Columbia Falls 

Extemporaneous  Speaking 

1. Logan Covey, Whitefish  

2. Mason Loeffler, Whitefish 

4. Greyson Pfeifle, Columbia Falls  

6. Merrick Fairchild, Columbia Falls  

8. Triston feller, Bigfork 

Impromptu Speaking 

1. Astir Pulsifer, Whitefish  

2. Eleanor Smiley, Columbia Falls 

3. Samantha Keim, Whitefish 

4. Abby Lawhead, Columbia Falls 

5. Kira Shanks, Columbia Falls 

Humorous Interpretation  

1. Brody Henion, Bigfork 

2. Jake Baldi, Bigfork 

4. Tia Marie Poor, Columbia Falls 

6. Lillian Nelson, Whitefish 

8. Adrien Sandon-Thompson, Columbia Falls 

Dramatic Interpretation  

1. Rylee Wood, Bigfork 

2. Kory Moran, Columbia Falls 

3. Aiden Cubbage, Whitefish 

4. Tia Marie Poor, Columbia Falls 

5. Von Blanchard, Columbia Falls 

Duo Interpretation  

1. Kajsa Mohr and Kory Moran, Columbia Falls 

2. Scarlet Burke and Unity Loveless, Whitefish  

3. Von Blanchard and Brandon Widhalm, Columbia Falls 

4. Olivia Close and Jake Baldi, Bigfork 

5. Cassidy Krack and Lillian Nelson, Whitefish 

7. Madeline Pomeroy and Cy Devlin, Bigfork 

Program Oral Interpretation  

1. Scarlet Burke, Whitefish  

3. Kira Shanks, Columbia Falls 

5. Merrick Fairchild, Columbia Falls 

7. Charlie Helgeson, Whitefish 

8. Callie Williams, Columbia Falls 

Informative Speaking 

1. Eleanor Smiley, Columbia Falls 

4. Olivia Close, Bigfork 

5. Greyson Pfeifle, Columbia Falls 

6. Elizabeth Burton, Columbia Falls 

8. Ella Siddall-Kim, Whitefish 

Memorized Public Address  

1. Merell Cooley, Columbia Falls 

2. Logan Covey, Whitefish  

3. Mason Loeffler, Whitefish  

5. Unity Loveless, Whitefish 

7. Jay Carlin, Columbia Falls 

Original Oratory  

1. Astir Pulsifer, Whitefish 

2. Merell Cooley, Columbia Falls 

3. Madeline Pomeroy , Bigfork 

4. Abby Lawhead, Columbia Falls