As the clapping died down from the standing ovation, everyone suddenly became quiet as the UIL One Act Play judge started to walk up to the ROJH students who had just sat down following their performance of “The Diviners.”

The tension in the room grew with each step. She was ready to give them notes about what she thought of the play.

“All I can say is ‘wow,’” judge Deborah Anderson said.

The play’s cast and crew burst into tears as the judge gave positive notes — and they all waited for the “but.”

The “but” never came.

Anderson did not give the group one bad note. The students finally felt all the pressure leave their chests.

When theater teacher Katrina Keener told them that they would feel it in their hearts that they did it, she wasn’t joking. The cast and crew headed to the dressing room to change clothes, then gathered together so Keener could talk to them.

“I don’t care what you guys get today,” Keener said. “I hope you get first, but honestly, I don’t care. You all got a standing ovation and that’s good enough for me.”

All the students from different schools gathered in sections as they piled into the auditorium. The curtains opened and there was a table full of medals. Then they moved on to who won what place.

Ennis, who performed “Alice,” won 3rd. Howard, who performed “Bloodwedding,” won 2nd. Then it was announced that Red Oak won 1st.

Many of the Ennis performers said that when they saw Red Oak all perform, they knew they had lost.

“I was excited the entire time. I was in a very good mood the day of competition so, I wasn’t worried,” ROJH One Act play member Cara Fine said.

Dawn Kiser, who was in charge of costumes for the play, put a lot of effort into her role.

“As we were preparing for competition, I had to draw sketches of every character and their costumes,” Kiser said. “It was a rush, but I would say that competition day was terrifying.”