Pencils ready… Papers ready… Ready set go…
After a UIL season full of fun trips, early mornings and breakfast tacos, the district meet is the end of the year for most competitors. There are a lucky few who placed in the top three and are headed to the next level of competition on April 27 at Baylor University in Waco.
“The best moment of district had to be getting 3rd,” freshman Ryder Sciba said. “I was so thrilled that I actually placed as a freshman. I also like the people here, everyone is super nice, and I don’t feel left out of place.”
UIL is a very unpredictable event. At first some competitors can be in two writing events when they get there and then be in five events when its time to write and compete.
“When I was at a UIL competition, I got to try out ready writing for the first time ever,” sophomore Victoria Medina said. “I went in so clueless, and I was bombarding Ms.Hardin with questions about how I’m supposed to do anything, but this was the moment when I realized that this was an event I want to continue doing probably till the end of high school, since I did decently at district.”
At first when competing in UIL some competitors might feel defeated from it, but it’s always good to never give up and keep practicing so they can be better at the next meet.
“UIL has taught me that if you place at one meet and don’t place at the next one, it isn’t the end of the world,” junior Ella Mcdonald said. “Ms. Meachen has taught me everything I know, and I hope I have made her proud this year. I went from not even placing at meets to qualifying for regionals in the span of just a few months. All of my friends and family have been extremely supportive and my confidence in my writing has grown so much.”
And at the end of the day, it’s always good to go to competitions and compete because at least they get the practice and can get better with each story they write or speech they give.
“The best moment at UIL was me getting to compete one last time in editorial and feature writing at UIL while being on time for once,” senior Jakeline Diaz said. “I’m always late, but I knew this day was important so I made sure to get there with plenty of time so I could prepare. My hard work paid off when I found out I made alternate for regionals, and I knew my high school UIL journey had come to a decent end.”
