With only one other competitor remaining on stage, junior Mya Gerstein waited for the judge to announce the result of the IHSA Speech State Final for the Radio Speaking event, but she had already given up hope.
“I was ready for them to call my name [for] second [place], and I was ready to be so happy with that, and then they didn’t,” said Gerstein. “And … it was a moment of pure disbelief, it was the best moment of my life.”
Gerstein was announced the state champion in Radio Speaking, an event in which competitors are given 45 minutes to excerpt, prepare and practice a news read from a packet of news stories from the past 24 hours. Competitors have five minutes to deliver the speech into a microphone in a room separate from the judges and audience.
Radio Speaking requires competitors to edit quickly, identify what information is most relevant and remain neutral and professional while still highlighting some of the emotional aspects while speaking, head coach Sarah Ilie said.
“There’s the element in this event where students just need to have what we call ‘the voice,’” said Ilie. “There are just certain vocal qualities and tones that carry really well on airwaves, and once we get to the official IHSA state series … how a voice carries through the microphone and the airwaves really matters.”
According to Gerstein, while preparing for the tournament, she worked a lot on her voice.
“We really tried to hammer [tone and pitch] in,” said Gerstein. “But when I went into that final round, I was in fourth for the [preliminary round], so I was not slated to win at all, I was coming out of it behind three other people.”
Two other speech team members placed in the top 10 at state. Senior Rina Matsunaga placed fourth in Original Oratory, and senior Alex McGarry placed sixth in Dramatic Interpretation. The team placed 12th overall.
Gerstein and five others qualified to compete at the National Speech & Debate Tournament in Des Moines, Iowa, which is scheduled for June 16 to June 21. Radio Speaking is not offered at the national tournament, so Gerstein plans to perform in Informative Speaking.
Winning state in Radio Speaking has helped Gerstein prepare for nationals, she said.
“Knowing that I am not … the competitor I was last year when I came to nationals, I am someone who has achieved so much more than I ever thought I could in a short time, and I think that sort of confidence and growth will really help me feel more capable while I’m competing [at nationals],” Gerstein said.