Cleburne’s public relations team had no reason to be nervous. It was prepared for perfection, and evidently achieved it.
“We weren’t so much nervous as we were confident,” junior member Shelby Galvin said. “We had practiced so much and had all our questions down and had our script down and knew what we were going in to do.
“We didn’t make any mistakes that I can remember.”
The predictable result: First place in Area VIII competition last Saturday at Hillsboro. Galvin and teammates Laura Wilson, Katie Babbitt, Sarah Brandon and Jordyn Taylor earned a spot in the state meet at Huntsville from Dec. 5-6.
The Cleburne radio team of Katlyn Martin, Kodie Ray, David Price, John Longoria, Joseph Snyder and Amber Blair also placed first to qualify for state.
The county’s other state qualifier, Grandview’s Amanda Rollins, was first in area in job interview.
Cleburne was third in senior creed and junior skills, fourth in junior creed, fifth in senior skills and ag issues, and 10th in junior chapter conducting.
Grandview was fifth in junior chapter conducting, senior chapter conducting and junior skills, and sixth in junior quiz contest.
Burleson was sixth in senior chapter conducting, eighth in senior creed and ninth in junior creed.
Joshua was seventh in public relations, and Alvarado ninth in ag issues.
Like Cleburne’s public relations team, the radio team took the stage as the next to last group.
“That was a little nerve-wracking,” Martin said, “because we had to wait so long to see how well we were going to do. We could hear the other teams perform while we were waiting upstairs. We tried to listen as much as we could.”
Nothing they heard from the other groups matched what they did themselves.
“They were just about flawless,” said Ray, an alternate. “I think it was the best they’ve ever done.”
Price, sounding much like the legendary Porter Randall of Texas State Network, bragged on his teammates.
“The best part of the routine was being able to see my teammates perform to their best and being able to perform with them,” he said. “I really enjoy being around them.”
The radio team doesn’t intend to rest on its laurels.
“We need to keep practicing so we don’t make the mistakes that could bring us down,” Longoria said.
“I think the performance was at its best [at area],” Snyder said. “If we don’t win state with that, then it just wasn’t in the cards.”
The public relations team’s performance is part show, part memorization, all personality and sincerity.
“When judges have sat there all day, listening to the same answers to the same questions over and over, you really have to be different,” Galvin said. “You have to do something a little different and have more confidence than the other teams.”
The judges surely appreciated that the Cleburne team had a good time.
“We were happy and enthusiastic,” Brandon said.
“They knew their parts, and they were very accurate,” Wilson, an alternate, said. “They didn’t stumble on the questions. You could tell they were confident.”
“They didn’t mess up at all,” Taylor, an alternate said. “That’s why they’re going to state.”
And when it was over, they knew it was an occasion to celebrate.
“We gave each other a big hug,” Babbitt said. “We knew we were at the top and that if we didn’t win, it was only because we’d gotten beat by somebody really good. It was definitely the best we had ever done.”
Cleburne
Cleburne teams, Grandview teen headed to state
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First team offense, defense features host of area standouts
The 2011 Lone Star Chrysler Dodge Jeep Autoplex All-Johnson-County football team has been announced. The team was chosen by the Times-Review sports department based on all-district selections and coaches’ nominations.
The first-team offense included Alvarado quarterback Kenny West and Burleson quarterback Barrett Cain. -
Cleburne, Grandview, Burleson lead second team offense, defense
The 2011 Lone Star Chrysler Dodge Jeep Autoplex All-Johnson-County football team has been announced. The team was chosen by the Times-Review sports department based on all-district selections and coaches’ nominations.
The second-team offense was led by Cleburne’s Quade Coward and Godley’s Rhett Brawner as the second-team quarterbacks. -
Cleburne pulls away from Burleson, 62-48
The Cleburne Yellow Jackets beat Burleson, 62-48, on Friday night at Yellow Jacket Gym to move to 2-7 in District 7-A play. Burleson fell to 2-7 in league play with the loss.
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Lady Jackets pick up first District 7-4A win
On Friday night at Yellow Jacket Stadium, Cleburne picked up its first win of the District 7-4A season, 66-60, over Burleson, which fell to 3-8.
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Up-and-down Yellow Jackets split Friday’s matches at Little Elm Tourney
Both Cleburne soccer teams had mixed results on Friday in their respective tournaments.
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Tuesday marks property tax payment deadline
Johnson County Tax Assessor Scott Porter said that Tuesday is the deadline to pay 2011 property taxes without penalties or interest.
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Lady Jackets setting the bar high in powerlifting
Last week at the Venus powerlifting meet, the Cleburne Lady Jackets sent several lifters to the competition.
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Cleburne ready for district swim meet
Both Cleburne swim teams are headed to the Mansfield ISD Natatorium on Saturday for the District 15-4A swim meet.
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Number of sex offenders increases
Now might be a good time to talk with your children about stranger danger. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children released an updated list of the country’s sex offenders this week. The survey showed 747,408 registered sex offenders.
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Council approves trash truck purchases
City plans to switch trash collection from a manual to an automated system should begin in about six months, Cleburne Assistant City Manager David Esquivel said Tuesday night.
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