October 2016
Sun Carnival tournament hosted at El Paso Community College - October 1-2
The ASU Forensics Team sent 4 students to compete in two single-day tournaments: Senior Benjamin Steele, Junior Abigail Toye, Sophomore Sachin Kumar, and Freshman Erin Guiney.
During the Saturday tournament, Steele placed 5th in Impromptu speaking, Kumar placed 4th in Extemporaneous speaking, Toye received 3rd in Dramatic Interpretation, and Guiney earned 4th in After Dinner Speaking AND the Top Novice award overall.
During the Sunday tournament, Steele placed 6th in Informative speaking and a finalist in Impromptu Speaking. Guiney finished 3rd in After Dinner Speaking and as a finalist in Impromptu. Kumar was a finalist in Extemporaneous speaking and 4th in ADS. Finally, Toye was a finalist in Dramatic Interpretation
DEBATE TEAM
March 2017
California Endorsed Debate Championship – March 20
Congrats to all the debaters on their performance at the California Endorsed Debate Championship. Bren Ram and Ryan Ferdowsian win their second consecutive tournament! Bren also took the top speaker with Ryan coming in at 2nd. Tanzil was the 7th speaker and Sam placed 10th.
February 2017
University of Southern California Pacific Debate - February 24-26
Congrats to Ryan Ferdowsian and Bren Ram win the Open division as Pacific Champions and qualify to the 2017 National Debate Tournament! First-year Kayla Green and Nicole Figueroa place 3rd in Novice. Bren Ram took 4th speaker in Open, Kayla Green 5th and Nicole Figueroa placed 3rd in Novice.
Northwestern University - February 4-6
ASU Debate Devils sent 8 members to Northwestern in early February: Bren Ram, Ryan Ferdowsian, Caleb/Colin, Elana/Sam, and Elyse/Tanzil.
January 2017
Southwestern College Debate Tournament, hosted by San Diego – January 21
ASU Debate Devils competed at the Southwestern tournament in San Diego the 3rd week of January. This is the 2nd year for this tournament.
Bren Ram finishes 2nd in Open, Ryan 9th speaker and Kayla 2nd speakers in Novice, and Nicole as 4th speaker. Bren and Ryan finished as semi-finalists!
November 2016
Cal State University-Northridge Tournament – November 4-7
The ASU Forensics Team took 7 students to the CSUN tournament to compete in debate.
In the novice division, first-year Kayla Green debated with a student from Weber State University (Henri Phan). Green received the 8th place individual speaker award. As a team, Green and Phan were a perfect 6-0 in the preliminary rounds, then won all 3 of their elimination rounds to be crowned Champions of Novice Division.
In varsity, Junior Bren Ram and Junior Caleb Vinson also earned a perfect 6-0 preliminary record before losing in the semifinals to CSU Long Beach. Ram was named the 2nd speaker in varsity.
Finally, first years Tanzil Chowdhury and Elyse Kats earned a 5-1 preliminary record in the varsity division. They won all 3 of their elimination rounds to be crowned Champions in Varsity! Tanzil was also named the 7th-place speaker.
Overall, ASU finished 2nd in Team Sweepstakes in speech and debate at the CSU Northridge tournament (total points awarded to all of a school's competitors)!
September 2016
Baby Jo Memorial Tournament, hosted by the University of Missouri, Kansas City - September 17-19
The ASU Forensics Team sent 6 debaters, including Senior Caleb Vinson, Junior Bren Ram, Sophomore Elana Quint, and Freshmen Elyse Kats, Tanzil Chowdhury, and Ryan Ferdowsian. The teams of Ferdowsian-Vinson and Chowdhury-Kats finished with 2 wins in the preliminary rounds. Teammates Ram and Quint amassed a 5-3 record in the eight preliminary debates, qualifying them for the elimination rounds. They finished in the top 20 out of 53 teams in the division, losing in the double-octafinals.
Bob Mukai Invitational Tournament, hosted by Weber State University - September 30-October 3
The ASU Forensics Team sent 8 debaters including Vinson, Ram, and Ferdowsian as well as Sophomores Sam Stoffer and Thomas Willis, and Freshmen Ryan Magel, Kayla Green, and Tarun Suresh. In the Open division, the team of Ram and Suresh accumulated a 5-3 record, qualifying for elimination rounds. In the double-octafinals, they defeated a team from Gonzaga University on a 2-1 decision by the judges. Ram and Suresh lost in the round of 16 teams, tying them for 9th out of a field of 50 teams. Also in the open division, Vinson/Ferdowsian finished with 2 wins in the eight preliminary rounds. In the Junior Varsity division, Stoffer and Willis had a 3-3 record, nearly qualifying for elimination rounds.
As a special note, the team of Bren Ram and Elana Quint was invited to compete in the 20th anniversary Val Browning Round Robin before the Mukai Invitational on September 28-29. The Round Robin was reserved for the top 9 teams attending the Mukai Invitational.