The Bright Side: RA Long High School wins 1st state choir medals in 20 years

R.A. Long High School choir students placed in three events at the Washington Music Educators Association State Solo and Ensemble Contest, earning the school its first state choral awards in over 20 years.

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Choir teacher Alison Askeland said this is the first time she has had students place in the state contest since she started teaching at R.A. Long in 2002.

"I was just floored," she said. "I was so proud of them."

The contest was held April 24 and 25 in Ellensburg. It included both choir and instrumental events.

Tenor/baritone/bass quartet

R.A. Long High School junior Luke Askeland, junior Juice Quiroz, senior Ryan Bolbt and junior Jack Sullivan pose with their trophy around choir teacher Alison Askeland at the Washington Music Educators Association State Solo and Ensemble Contest. The quartet won second place in the tenor/baritone/bass small ensemble event.

To qualify, schools compete in one of 22 regional competitions around the state. Most Cowlitz County school districts are in the Southwest region except for Woodland School District, which is part of the Lower Columbia River region.

Senior Katelyn Earle placed third in the soprano voice solo event. Earle, sophomore Hazel Sharp, junior Jack Sullivan and junior Luke Askeland placed third in the mixed small ensemble event. Sullivan, Luke Askeland, senior Ryan Bolbt and junior Juice Quiroz placed second in the tenor/baritone/bass small ensemble event.

All the students except Quiroz also attended the choir competition last year. This was Quiroz's first year competing in choir, but he attended as a tuba player the last two years, he said.

Having previous experience performing together and understanding how the competition worked helped boost the students' confidence this year, Luke Askeland said.

Katelyn Earle

R.A. Long High School senior Katelyn Earle shows off her medal at the Washington Music Educators Association State Solo and Ensemble Contest. Earle tied for third place in the soprano voice solo event.

The students had some time in class to practice for the competition, but mainly met outside of school.

"We worked our butts off this year," Earle said. "We worked so, so hard, so to see it pay off was really just a relief, and really exciting."

Even before the results were announced at the competition, Luke Askeland said his group was cautiously optimistic about their chances.

"I think we knew that we were good because we got very good ratings at the regional contest, but there was still a lot of work that had to be done between regional and state," he said. "We thought we had a chance, but to actually be doing it is different."

Mixed quartet

R.A. Long High School sophomore Hazel Sharp, senior Katelyn Earle, junior Luke Askeland and junior Jack Sullivan pose with their trophy at the Washington Music Educators Association State Solo and Ensemble Contest. The school won three awards in total, marking its first victories at the event in over 20 years.

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This story was originally published May 13, 2026 at 4:32 AM.