The competition ran Oct. 28-31 at West Texas A&M University. The Texoma region covers Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. Auditions group singers by voice type and semesters of study after high school, so students compete against singers with similar voices at similar stages of training.
Williams' first-place finish qualifies him for the 2027 National Student Auditions. Fellow Wayland vocalist Jazmin Ortega, a senior choral music education major from Odessa, reached the semifinals in the fourth- and fifth-year classical treble division. Both study voice with Dr. Brian Kuhnert, who directs vocal studies in Wayland's School of Creative Arts.
Dr. Kennith Freeman, associate professor of collaborative piano, accompanied both singers at the auditions. Kuhnert said, "To the best of my knowledge, we have never had a student win their division at Texoma NATS." He called even reaching the final round in some divisions "quite an accomplishment." Wayland, established in 1908, is headquartered in Plainview and also runs an extension campus in Lubbock.