When it comes to winning, championships and awards are what most teams aim to receive. Although, with the recent surges of COVID, having a face-to-face conversation could be a lot tougher than winning an award in general. Still, getting that recognition is something most people, including both the NHS Speech and Mock Trial teams, are shooting for. 

In 2019, The NHS Speech and Debate team were state champs in Oratory (Public Speaking), and ever since then, they’ve been working towards their big goal. 

“Last year we competed in nationals, which is something we would love to do again this year,” senior Hannah Williamson, the co-captain of the speech and debate team, said. 

Although COVID has restricted some of the things clubs can do, such as in-person competitions, the members aren’t giving up.

“Even though we were completely online for a while, we still tried our hardest,” Williamson said.

And they aren’t the only ones. While the Mock Trial Team experiences a few similar incidents related to COVID, they don’t let it get in their way of winning a county championship.

“COVID quarantines have meant scrambling to fill important roles, sometimes at the last minute,” Jack Greenwood, the sponsor of the Mock Trial Team, said. “But this has not hindered our motivation, nor our teams’ success.”

Even with all the changes clubs have implemented due to COVID, one universal thing remains the same, the motivation and drive to win.