Category: Uncategorized (Page 8 of 14)

by Vanessa Milan

EASTON, PA – This weekend the Lafayette College Forensics Society hosted the Pennsylvania State Forensics Association Championship Tournament. Pardee Hall was packed with competitors from Penn State University, West Chester University, St. Joseph’s University, Wilkes University, and Bloomsburg University competing in a variety of speech events and parliamentary debate. As always, Lafayette competitors demonstrated their dedication to Forensics in every way they could—from wild warm-ups to passionate and intellectual speeches.

At the conclusion of the tournament, every member of the Lafayette Forensics Society left wearing at least one medal—including two state championship medals. Kaitlin Kinsella (’17) was named state champion in rhetorical criticism for her speech on a photography project in New York City. Michael Wellnitz (’19) was named state champion in informative speaking for his speech on transparent solar panels. Fayola Fair (’19) and Aaron Walker (’18) were runner-up finishers in poetry interpretation and extemporaneous speaking respectively. As a team, the Lafayette Forensics Society finished 3^rd in the state of Pennsylvania. In addition to his competitive success, Aaron Walker was elected as one of the two student representatives for the state.

Director of Forensics and President of the Pennsylvania Forensics Association, Scott Placke, remarked that the state tournament is one of the most rewarding tournaments every year because it is experienced as a Lafayette Forensics Society family. With so many alumni returning to judge, it was heart-warming to see multiple generations of Lafayette Forensics laughing together and sharing their love of forensics. The Lafayette Forensics Society is thankful for their contributions to the tournament and to the team. Alumni judges included Erik Heins, Jen Rusak, Nicholas Moore, Mark Kokoska, Rachel Heron, Elizabeth Wehler, Samuel Derrick, Ryan Benjamin, Teevrat Garg, Joseph Dudek, and James Hilbert.

One of the best things about hosting the state tournament is the opportunity to showcase forensics for the college. Several staff and faculty members also donated their time to act as judges for the tournament. Lafayette Forensics Society would like to extend a special thanks to the Director of Religious and Spiritual Life, Alex Hendrickson, Professor of Economics, James DeVault, and Professor of Economics, Rose Marie Bukics. The contributions of the host community at any forensics tournament enriches the educational and co-curricular experience.

The Lafayette Forensics Society travels to Hillsdale College in Michigan for their last invitational of the year in early March. After that, the team will travel to various national tournaments in March and April.

Full results

Cassidy Reller ’16 – 3rd in Extemporaneous Speaking, 3rd in Persuasion, and 3rd in Rhetorical Criticism

Vanessa Milan ’16 – 6th in Persuasion

Kaitlin Kinsella ’17 – 1st Place in Rhetorical Criticism and 3^rd in Duo Interpretation (Walker)

Aaron Walker ’18 – 3rd in Extemporaneous Speaking, 2nd in Impromptu Speaking, and 3rd in Duo Interpretation (Kinsella)

Fayola Fair ’19 – 2nd in Poetry Interpretation and 3rd in Impromptu Speaking

Michael Wellnitz ’19 – 1st in Informative Speaking and 5^th in Persuasion

Sarah Pungitore ’19 – 4th in Extemporaneous Speaking

3^rd place – Team Sweepstakes

by Elaine Huang

HARRISONBURG, VA – This past weekend, senior Cassidy Reller, competed at James Madison University for the final time. Despite his veteran status, it marks the first time this season that Cassidy has competed in Persuasive Speaking. In a stellar debut, Reller advanced to the final round and finished 5th at the tournament in Persuasion. This finish qualifies Cassidy for the national tournament in that event. He also competed in Extemporaneous Speaking and Impromptu Speaking, both events that he has previously qualified for nationals.

Traveling with Director of Forensics, Scott Placke, Cassidy also got the opportunity to experience a smorgasbord of southern food.  Despite being the lone competitor at the tournament, Cassidy performed valiantly and represented the team and Lafayette College well!

by Joseph Rothschild

ST. LOUIS, MO – After spending four and a half days shuffling through classes, Lafayette Forensicators Sarah Pungitore (’19), Vanessa Milan (’16), and Joseph Rothschild (’16) piled onto a plane to attend one of the largest tournaments of the year, Webster University’s Gorlok Gala. Though most of the team ended up sick as a result of the combined three hours of sleep they got over the weekend, their sniffling and coughing wasn’t enough to prevent them from picking up multiple top finishes in both speech and debate.

After six excruciating rounds of debate, fourth-year Gorlok participant Joseph Rothschild was awarded Top Speaker, only dropping 1 and a half speaker points out of the 180 available over the weekend. After a top 16 break, he dropped in a highly competitive round against Western Kentucky’s Bailey Rung on a 2-1 decision. Debating alongside him was Vanessa Milan, another fourth-year Gorlock participant, who spent her six preliminary rounds sparring alongside the circuit’s best.

The talk of the tournament for Lafayette, however, was novice debater Sarah Pungitore, who not only made her varsity debut in the Lincoln-Douglas tournament, but also made it into the semifinal round of Extemporaneous Speaking. This was a huge honor for both the debater and the dedicated teammates who remained in Easton, who spent the weekend diligently pulling files and arguments for Pungitore to deploy with her characteristic charm.

When not desperately trying to sneak in naps between rounds and losing themselves in a pile of paper, Vanessa, Sarah, and Joseph were treated to the Gorlock’s classic toasted ravioli dinner, a nighttime drive around the loop, and a fantastic dinner in a rotating booth. The team definitely cherished the ability to compete in one of the largest and most competitive tournaments of the year, and will be returning in two weeks to attend a tournament at James Madison University.

by Elaine Huang

AUSTIN, TX – Five members of the Lafayette Forensics Team, along with Kim and Scott, competed at Hell Froze Over, two tournaments held at the University of Texas at Austin on January 16^th and 17^th. Hell Froze Over is one of the most difficult and largest tournaments of the year.  Over 40 schools from all over the nation attend this tournament.

First-year students Richard Mallon, Lauren Wisniewski, Sarah Pungitore, and Elaine Huang, along with sophomore Aaron Walker, had the opportunity to view a multitude of outstanding performances. It was definitely a learning experience for all, as the team members absorbed lessons that ranged from issues like politics from watching Extemporaneous Speaking rounds, to effectively portraying emotion in Dramatic Interpretation rounds. These lessons will be invaluable in kicking off the new semester in the Spring of 2016!

The team returns to competition this Friday, January 29th at Webster University in St. Louis, MO.

by Elaine Huang

COLUMBUS, OH – This weekend, first year competitors Elaine Huang (’19) and Michael Wellnitz (’19) competed in the Holiday Frolic Tournament at the frighteningly large Ohio State University. The students were accompanied by two coaches, John Boyer and Kimberlee Runnion. Huang competed in Lincoln-Douglas debate and Extemporaneous Speaking while Wellnitz competed in Persuasion. In Lincoln-Douglas debate, Elaine finished with a 3-1 record and qualified for the single-elimination quarterfinal round. In quarterfinals, Huang defeated a debater from Central Michigan University on a 2-1 decision. Advancing to semifinals, Huang faced a debater from Hillsdale College. Elaine was again victorious, this time on a 3-0 decision. In Finals, Huang debated against Duncan Voyles from Hillsdale College who had competed in the elimination rounds at nationals last year. Despite facing one of the top 30 debaters in the nation from last year, Elaine was crowned tournament champion on a 2-1 decision. Elaine was also named the tournament’s second best speaker, behind only Central Michigan’s Audrey Weber who had finished in the top 4 at the national tournament last year.

While all of this was going on, Michael Wellnitz was competing in Persuasion, and consequently having to carry around giant visual aids that he complained about all weekend. Michael had a successful first taste of out-of-region competition, narrowly missing out on qualifying for the final round. Behind these two performances, the team won 3^rd place in limited entry sweepstakes—an amazing accomplishment.

While the Lafayette team’s entry list was short, their dining adventures were extensive. Food devoured ranged from burgers and creamy milkshakes from Steak ‘n Shake to the celestial cookies of life from Insomnia Cookies. Most importantly, the team rewarded themselves with Mongolian BBQ after the tournament had finished. Kim and Elaine polished off a giant goblet of a pillow-soft brownie enrobed in mint chocolate ice cream drizzled with caramel and fudge sauce while John and Michael watched enviously. On the drive home, the team stopped by Bob Evans for brunch.

The Holiday Frolic was a nourishing tournament, not just in terms of enriching Michael and Elaine’s experience in competition but their appetites as well.

by Elaine Huang

MANCHESTER, NH – The Lafayette Forensics team brought an incredible force of debaters and IE-ers to St. Anselm’s this past weekend.

Aaron Walker (’18) was 1st place in Trithon, an award for individuals who competed in three events or more. He finished 2nd place in Extemporaneous speaking, 1st place in Impromptu, and 1st place in Duo with Lauren Wisniewski (’19), a stellar accomplishment for their first time competing in the event together. He is now qualified for nationals in all three events.

Cassidy Reller (’16) was 3rd place in Trithon. His wins consisted of 1st place in Extemporaneous speaking, 2nd place in Rhetorical Criticism, and 2nd place in Impromptu. He qualified for nationals in Impromptu and Rhetorical Criticism.

In addition to Lauren, other first year IE-ers had an impressive run as well. Michael Wellnitz (’19) placed 3rd in Persuasion. Fayola Fair (’19) received 4th place in Impromptu. All three qualified for nationals in their respective events. The efforts of the Lafayette IE-ers earned them 3rd place in IE Team Sweepstakes.

Debate-land was full of thrills as well. In Novice NFA-LD Debate, Sarah Pungitore (’19) was 3rd place speaker and semifinalist, while Lauren Wisniewski was 1st place speaker and the Novice LD Champion. She defeated her opponent from St. Anselm College in the final on a 2-1 decision. In Open LD, Vanessa Milan (’16) was 2nd place speaker and placed 2nd in the event, while Elaine Huang (’19) was 3rd place speaker. The combined finishes were enough to propel Lafayette towards 1st place Sweepstakes in debate!

Overall, it was an amazing weekend, topped off with a delicious lunch at Stew Leonard’s on the drive home.

by Elaine Huang

HUNTINGTON, WV – This Halloween weekend, first-years Elaine Huang (’19), Connor Burwell (’19), Lauren Wisniewski (’19), and Sarah Pungitore (’19) struck fear not with their frightening costumes, but with their freakishly impressive performances at Marshall University’s Annual Speech and Debate Tournament.

On Saturday, Connor, Sarah, and Lauren all competed in the novice division of Lincoln Douglas Debate, debating four rounds, while Elaine threw herself into the open division of Lincoln Douglas Debate for the first time, enduring six rounds. It was her and Sarah’s first time competing in the novice division of Extemporaneous Speaking, and Connor’s first time competing in After Dinner Speaking. Lauren competed in Poetry for the second time. An exhausting day ended with a rewarding announcement–Connor Burwell had advanced to the final round of Novice Lincoln Douglas Debate!

On Sunday, Connor gave an astounding performance against Simpson College’s Kelly Clark. Though he lost the round on a 3-0 decision, the debate was incredibly close. Later, the team found out Sarah and Connor had both advanced to the final round of their respective speech events. In finals of Extemporaneous Speaking, Sarah gave an analytical speech about Africa and Boko Haram while Connor delivered his hilarious and insightful After Dinner Speech about co-ed fraternities.

Sarah and Connor both received 6th place for their speech events, with Connor also receiving an award for Top Novice in ADS. Lauren received Top Novice for her performance in Poetry, as well as first speaker in Novice LD. In addition to winning second place in Novice LD, Connor also claimed the title of second speaker. All in all, it was an amazing learning experience for the tiny, but formidable Lafayette force at Marshall!

by Joseph Rothschild

EASTON, PA – The Lafayette Forensics team has done it again in their hometown, clinching a first-place finish over a half-dozen top contenders at the Ocho, our very own annual tournament held on October 3rd and 4th.

Not only did the back-to-back four-round tournaments represent an incredible opportunity for experienced debaters to prove their worth, it also marked the first time Lafayette’s first-year debaters attended a competition. Elaine Huang (’19), Connor Burwell (’19), Sarah Pungitore (’19), and Lauren Wisniewski (’19) all had remarkable showings at their debut tournament.

The first day of the tournament, returning debater Joseph Rothschild (’16) and novice debaters Elaine Huang, Connor Burwell, and Lauren Wisniewski all advanced to elimination rounds. All three of the novices made it to quarterfinals, an impressive showing for the first debate tournament of their lives. In open, Joseph Rothschild advanced all the way to finals where he matched up against Western Kentucky’s Mark Allseits. The explosive round resulted in a 3-0 decision for the hometown debater from Lafayette College.  This was Joseph’s second consecutive win and third successive final round appearance to start the season.

The second day of the tournament, Joseph Rothschild had prior obligations, but was still around to scout rounds and distract Lafayette’s other returning debaters, Alyssa Braver (’16) and Vanessa Milan (’16). After another grueling four rounds of competition, Vanessa Milan advanced to elimination rounds in open alongside Elaine Huang, Connor Burwell, and Lauren Wisniewski, who once again advanced. While Lauren Wisniewski and Connor Burwell once more were eliminated in quarterfinals, Elaine Huang made it all the way to semifinals before being eliminated. Vanessa Milan, in open, powered through an octofinal round before a close debate against CSU Sacremento’s Brandon Garcia. Day 2 open finals concluded with a Western Kentucky victory awarded to Carolyn Evans.

All in all, it was a phenomenal weekend for Lafayette College. Besides the Day 1 victory and numerous speaker awards falling in Lafayette’s favor, three novice debaters are now qualified for the national tournament, and Vanessa Milan’s elimination-round appearance qualifies her as well.

by Joseph Rothschild

BOWLING GREEN, KY – Lafayette Forensics hit the ground running at Western Kentucky University (September 18-20), starting off the season with a series of impressive finishes over the three-day, two-tournament long weekend. While only two members of the team (Alyssa Braver ‘16 and Joseph Rothschild ‘16) were able to attend, their combined efforts were enough to clinch two final round performances, one national qualification, and even a first-place finish.

The first of the two tournaments, the Alexis Elliot Round Robin, is a yearly tournament hosted by Western Kentucky that aims to reward some of the most consistently successful debaters in the region with a 6-round tournament. The round robin was divided into two sections, named “Big Red” for WKU’s mascot and “White Squirrel” after the albino rodents that are found around campus. Both Alyssa Braver and Joseph Rothschild were proud to represent Lafayette College in the two separate pods of the tournament. Joseph Rothschild won the “Big Red” division of the tournament and 2nd place overall after a heated final round and a 4-1 decision to the winner of the “White Squirrel” division, WKU’s own Mark Allseits.

After some mediocre chicken and waffles at a local diner, Alyssa and Joseph returned the next day for the second of the two tournaments. Another grueling six rounds later, Joseph Rothschild was able to claim a spot in the top 8, ensuring the team would get precisely zero hours of sleep and instead would spend the evening researching and preparing new evidence in the hotel lobby. With the help of coaches John Boyer and Kim Runnion and the steadfast dedication of fellow teammate Alyssa Braver, Joseph won his quarterfinal and semifinal round on back-to-back 2-1 decisions before debating WKU’s own Bailey Rung in finals. After an especially close debate, the decision was another 2-1 in Lafayette’s favor. The team beat a hasty retreat to their flight with their first-place trophy in tow.

WKU’s tournament is the first qualifier of the year, and the team’s impressive finish qualifies Joseph Rothschild to the national tournament to be held in April. Lafayette will not compete again until their own two-day tournament, The Ocho, on October 3rd and 4th. Watch this space for the results of what promises to be another exciting tournament!

by Alyssa Braver and Kaitlin Kinsella

ATHENS, OH — For the second time this year, The Lafayette Forensics Society traveled to Ohio University in Athens, Ohio for a national tournament. After a successful trip to the Pi Kappa Delta National Conference Tournament, the team headed back for the National Forensic Association’s National Championships. In order to attend this prestigious event, competitors in both speech and debate had to qualify at regular season tournaments.

The Lafayette Forensics Society has spent the year debating the topic “Resolved: that the United States Federal Government should increase its development of the Earth’s moon in one or more of the following areas: energy, minerals, and/or water.” A long season culminated in six preliminary rounds and five single-elimination debates to determine the national champion. This year five debaters attended: Ryan Monahan (‘15), Justin Horn (’15), Joseph Rothschild (’16), Alyssa Braver (’16), and Vanessa Milan (’16). Lafayette alumni Samuel Derrick (‘10) and Teevrat Garg (’10) also came back to help coach the team and act as judges. There were 84 debaters from 23 different schools competing in debate. The competition was fierce, but this did not stop Lafayette from having an amazing end to an amazing season.

Senior Justin Horn (’15), and Juniors Alyssa Braver (’16) and Vanessa Milan (’16) did not advance to elimination rounds, but they were an integral part of the team in terms of preparing their fellow teammates. Ryan Monahan (’15) and Joseph Rothschild (’16) advanced to the elimination rounds, which is an incredible achievement in itself as only 32 debaters advanced.   Monahan advanced as the tournament’s second seed, while Rothschild was the last debater to qualify in the thirty-second spot.

Monahan went undefeated during pre-elimination rounds and utilized the second seed to his advantage. He defeated Purdue’s Taylor Brewer in the round of 32, advancing to face Bailey Rung from Western Kentucky University in the round of 16. Victorious against Rung, Monahan advanced to the quarterfinals and debated Truman State University’s Dillon Laaker. Monahan advanced on a 3-0 decision, which set up a semifinal round against Western Kentucky’s Nefertiti Dukes.

As the thirty-second seed in the tournament, Joseph Rothschild was paired against the top seeded Emma Collins from Western Kentucky University. Like Monahan, Collins had been undefeated in the preliminary rounds and the senior was looking to finish a terrific senior season with a deep run at nationals. In a highly competitive round, Rothschild pulled off the upset on a 2-1 decision. This win gave Rothschild momentum and he rolled through Missouri State’s Pouya Parsian in the round of 16 to set up a quarterfinal matchup against high school rival, Tyler Prochazka. Tyler and Joseph were both high school debaters in Kansas and have debated many times in the last six or seven years. In an emotional round, Rothschild continued his roll into the semi-finals on another 2-1 decision. Cenrtral Michigan University’s Audrey Weber awaited.

At this point, with two debaters in semifinals, Lafayette knew they had locked up second place in the team portion of the event. Western Kentucky had already sealed first place on the strength of putting FIVE debaters into the top 16. This is a tremendous achievement for the team, and is the third time Lafayette has finished in second place of the team portion at Nationals.

In the semifinals, Ryan Monahan debated Western Kentucky’s Nefertiti Dukes. The two seniors are friendly rivals, and their semi-final round was one of the most anticipated debates of the year. The two have been two of the top debaters in the nation for the past two seasons. In a close round, Ryan lost to Nefertiti, who advanced to finals. However, Ryan did manage to secure the 4^th place speaker award for the entire tournament. This was a fantastic end to his career, which included two appearances in the national semifinal round, a Lafayette record. His success in debate has served him well. Monahan is currently planning to attend University of Pennsylvania law school in the fall.

Joseph Rothschild debated Central Michigan University’s Audrey Weber in Semi-finals. In a unanimous 5-0 decision, Rothschild advanced to the final round, against Western Kentucky’s Nefertiti Dukes. Almost every debater and coach at the tournament attended the final round. A diverse seven-judge panel was assigned the task of deciding a national champion. It was an exciting, educational, and emotional time as both debaters began their speeches by thanking coaches and teammates. In one of the closest finals round that anyone can remember, Joseph Rothschild finished runner-up on a 4-3 decision awarded to Western Kentucky’s Nefertiti Dukes.

Lafayette Forensics Society has yet to win the national championship, but Rothschild’s success marks the second time Lafayette has advanced a debater to the final round and Monahan is the fifth Lafayette debater to finish in the top four at the  national tournament.  Despite not advancing to the elimination rounds, Senior Justin Horn has also finished his career as a debater at Lafayette College.  As a junior, Justin was part of the group of debaters that closed out the top four spots at the Pi Kappa Delta national tournament and participated in the elimination rounds at the NFA national championships, finishing tied for 17th.  Now that the team has returned, it is time to start preparing to do it all again next year with a new topic – bioethics.

In addition to having a strong showing in debate, Lafayette Forensics Society was represented by seniors Sharon Chen (’15) and Joe Arrieta (’15); juniors Cassidy Reller (’16), Alyssa Braver (’16), Vanessa Milan (’16), and Jen Bognar (’16); sophomore Kaitlin Kinsella (’17); and first-year Aaron Walker (’18) in the speech events. While the speech team did not secure any individual awards, the team was victorious in coming together and rallying behind one another. Lafayette competed in eight different individual events: rhetorical criticism, informative speaking, persuasive speaking, after dinner speaking, poetry interpretation, prose interpretation, extemporaneous speaking, and impromptu speaking. Teammates supported each other by watching rounds and practices. The entire team is close-knit despite the individual nature of the events. Members of the team should be proud of their accomplishments over the past year. In order to compete at NFA one must qualify for this tournament, which is not an easy task. Just competing at NFA is an accomplishment to be proud of. This year Lafayette was able to have each member of the speech team qualify in all of their events showing the strength and dedication of each member.

NFA is the last tournament of the year that Lafayette travels to together as a team. Seniors Sharon Chen, Joe Arrieta, Ryan Monhan, and Justin Horn will be greatly missed. These four seniors have been great leaders and role models for their teammates and have been integral for Lafayette’s success these past few years. Their experience with the Lafayette Forensics Society will be invaluable in whatever endeavors come next for each of them. We can’t wait to have them back to help judge and coach!

There is just one more tournament left. Sharon Chen (’15) qualified for the Interstate Oratorical Association’s national tournament. Taking place at Berry College in Georgia, the IOA tournament is the oldest oratorical competition in the nation. In addition to competing for top honors, Chen will have her speech published in the annual publication Winning Orations. Lafayette has a long tradition of qualifying students to the IOA tournament and Sharon will make the Lafayette Forensics Society proud!