Benton High School sophomore wins Zone 2 American Legion Oratorical Contest

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- Benton High School sophomore Alexandria Penland will head to state after she took first place at an American Legion Oratorical Contest.

Penland represented the American Legion 4th District at First Baptist Church in Plattsburg, Missouri, and beat out Anthony Sisemore from the Legion's 7th District and Isabella de Costa from the Legion's 3rd District.

Penland had previously won at the county-level competition, held at Benton High School in December. All competitors had been chosen by their respective schools.

State competition will be March 1.

A quote from Penland's speech, "one day or day one," resonated with her, as it was a favorite quote of a friend who graduated.

"A lot of the hard work I put into doing well at the things I do starts with just trying it out," Penland said. "You can always think you'll be great one day, but it'll never happen if you don't start with day one."

Contestants are challenged to present a five to six-minute prepared speech and then speak for three to five minutes on an assigned topic.

2026 marks the 92nd year that The American Legion Department of Missouri has sponsored the annual contest.

The contest meets the guidelines of the Missouri State High School Activities Association and appears in the advisory List of Contests and Activities of the National Association of Secondary School Principals.

The Legion also partners with the National Speech and Debate Association.

State finalists will receive different scholarships and medals. First place receives a gold medal and $5,000, second place receives a silver medal and $2,500.

Third and fourth places will each receive a bronze medal, with third place being awarded $2,250 and fourth being awarded $2,000.

The state winner will go on to compete at the national level.