This was Woller’s third time competing at state, a school record. It is the only time MVL has had a member of the speech team make it to the finals at state three years in a row.

She previously finished fifth and first in the category of extemporaneous reading. This year, Woller was awarded second place, an impressive achievement to close out her high school speech career.

Woller was part of MVL’s extemporaneous reading team since her freshman year. When she first joined the speech team, extemporaneous was a popular category.

Extemporaneous speaking refers to a type of speech that is done without preparation. In the case of extemporaneous reading, students were given section of a written work to read in front of judges.

MVL senior Claire Woller was named to the Minnesota Speech Coaches Association 2025 All-State Speech team in April. Woller has appeared in the state finals for extemporaneous reading three years in a row. This year she took second overall during the Minnesota State High School League state speech competition.

Woller said each year speech teams are told in advance which book the extemporaneous reading selections are taken, but not specifically which sections they will be asked to read.

Woller said during the speech tournament, every participant draws three random cuttings and selects one to read in front of the judge.

“You draw three stories and you pick one of the options,” Woller said. “Then you have 30 minutes to practice before performing.”

In each round, the extemporaneous readers get seven minutes to perform the selection. Woller said those who perform well move on to the next round. There are three rounds of reading. The top readers move on to the fourth and final round. In the last three years, Woller was able to make it to the fourth round at state.

Asked what the secret is to extemporaneous reading, she said “It’s less about what you are reading, but how you read it.”

Woller admitted extemporaneous reading can be hard, but after four years of competing in it, she understands the category fairly well.

“When I look at a reading, I try to find a theme or moral I can extend upon,” she said. The easiest reading prompts are the ones that express an emotion. It is easier to convey certain emotions. However, some reading selections have no obvious emotions. That’s when it is important to find a theme to provide context.

Woller said during the first rounds at state, her reading selections were light on the emotions.

“I had my work cut out for me,” she said. “It came more about performing well instead of making the judge feel something.”

Woller’s approach was successful and she advanced to the fourth and final round at state. Though she had made it the final round before, Woller said she was a bit nervous about living up to last year’s success.

“I tried to remember this was my last time do int,” she said. “I wanted to have fun.”

Another benefit was the support she received from her team. Extemporaneous reading is an individual competition, but other members from MVL’s speech team were there to provide support. It was a gesture she greatly appreciated.

Woller said her final round at state went very well. She benefited from drawing a comedic reading. Most of her nervous energy was gone once she had the group laughing and reacting to her piece. In the end, Woller was able to secure a second-place finish at state. Though she did not receive first, Woller was happy to see her final score was actually the same as the first-place winner.

“We actually tied for first with the same points,” she said. Judges’ preference ultimately determined her second-place position. Overall, Woller was fine with taking second in the tiebreaker because she already had a first-place victory from last year.

“I feel confident in my craft and can be happy knowing my last round was strong,” she said.

Woller will be graduating from MVL this month. She plans to attend Bethany Lutheran College and will be part of their speech team. Unfortunately there is no extemporaneous reading category on the college level. Woller is still trying to decide what type of speech category to take up in college.

“Claire is going to be successful in whatever she chooses to do,” MVL Speech Coach Karyn Clemons said. “She is a talented, humble competitor, and I’m going to miss having her on my team.”

Woller is currently leaning towards taking up prose speech in college, but also plans to take part in the performance arts at Bethany. Woller has previous acting experience. She recently appeared in MVL’s production of “Newsies.” Many of the skills it takes to excel at extemporaneous reading transfer to acting as well.

“Extemporaneous reading definitely helped me act,” she said.

Though her high school career as an extemporaneous reader only recently ended, Woller admitted she already misses it and has not ruled out returning as an assistant coach for the speech team.

Ask what advice she would give to other extemporaneous readers, she said, “Keep trying. You’ll fail, but don’t give up.”

In addition to taking second at state, Woller was named a member of the Minnesota Speech Coaches’ Association all-state team.