by Scott Placke

EVANSTON, IL – On March 25 and 26, 5 members (Yazmin Baptiste, Chris Mayer, Saeed Malami, Jennie Richardson, and Aaron Walker) of the Lafayette Forensics Society travelled to the National Speech Championship at Northwestern University.  Four out of the five students, in seven events, advanced to the elimination rounds.  Three of those seven events advanced all the way to the final round!  Lafayette has never had more than one finalist at a national tournament, and this year the team had three!

The full results are as follows:

Yazmin Baptiste: Poetry – Quarterfinalist
Chris Mayer: Extemporaneous – Semifinalist; Impromptu – Quarterfinalist
Saeed Malami: After Dinner Speaking – 4th place; Dramatic Interpretation – 6th place
Aaron Walker: Extemporaneous – Quarterfinalist; Impromptu – 6th place

This marked the inaugural year for the National Speech Championship.  Twenty six teams from around the country attended.  It is an honor to be recognized along side of some of the very best in the nation. Next year the tournament will be held at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln.

Director of Forensics, Scott Placke had this to say: “Lafayette had a really great weekend.  I am very proud of these guys.  This was a difficult competition with a truly national draw.  As always, I am excited to see what they do next.”