Place Name: First Place Contestant Name: Nation Ford High School - The Talon Entry Title: A Couple Entry Credit: Foster Swanson Judge Comment: The poet demonstrated complete mastery of the chosen form. The poem allowed the moment depicted to shine through in beautiful simplicity. True to the Haiku form, a singular image tells a full story.
Place Name: Second Place Contestant Name: Nation Ford High School - The Talon Entry Title: People Before Me Entry Credit: Emily Rushing Judge Comment: The rhyme scheme provided a helpful structure that showcased the progression of the speaker’s sense of self over the course of the poem. The poet made use of strong imagery in lines like "grandmother's tongue, jagged glass and mean."
Place Name: Third Place Contestant Name: Cedar Shoals High School - BluePrints Entry Title: Disco ball Entry Credit: Kira Law Judge Comment: The refrain, and the reworking of the refrain in the final lines, helped to anchor the poem. I would’ve liked to see more descriptive language about the disco ball, but consonance (“that wild swirl abreast”) and diction “chimeric delusion” worked well.
