The Loyola Sacred Heart Speech and Debate team continued to make history with their milestone win at the State BC Speech and Debate tournament at Huntley Project on Jan. 25-26.

LSH won its 25th consecutive State Speech and Debate Championship, with 26 team members rising to the challenge and 21 of them earning medals.

As a team, Loyola scored 177 points to outdistance the other 48 schools participating. Forsythe came in second with 33 points and Whitehall placed third with 31.

Five LSH students won gold by placing first in their respective events. They were: Nick Corn and Will Blair in policy debate; Dan Evans the first three-time champion in extemporaneous speaking in team history; Emily Mihalic in original oratory, and Emilie Loran in humorous oral interpretation of literature.

Other Loyola finalists were Mike Tarbert and Kevin Conley, Mary Callahan- Baumstark and Katie Neher, Tricia Karsky, Matt Eddy, Myles Dauterive, Mariah Rys- Sikora, Brooke Sauro, Erik Kappelman, Mike Evans, Kyle Doyle, Justin Dart, Dylan Hyland, Dylan Linhart, Dan Cloninger, Lyle Pocha, Nick Mihalic; and Ali Hege, Alex Hughes and Ashley Wegener also competed in the tournament.

“This year’s team was loaded with competitive ability and character. They were a class act,” said Matt Stergios, the team’s head coach.

Usually championship teams do not win on talent alone, he explained. They must learn to stay focused, be professional and compete as a team. This year’s group truly embodied those traits, Stergios said, noting that they raised the bar of excellence and gave their best effort in competition. Everywhere they went, they were complimented on their respect, politeness and integrity, he added.

In addition to Stergios, the team was coached by Sarah Jennings, Stephanie Mansanti and Chuck Hansberry. Theresa Stergios provided logistical support and put on a divisional tournament.

“Winning 25 consecutive state titles puts Loyola among the top five high school competitive programs in United States history for any sport or activity,” the coach said. “This outstanding achievement is a testament to an outstanding school, dedicated teachers and coaches and parental support that is second to none. With God’s help, this streak will continue.”


Published in The Montana Catholic Online, Volume 24, No. 3, March 21, 2008.