NEWBERRY — The Newberry College Speech and Debate Team earned top honors at the Southern Forensics Championship Tournament, held Jan. 30–Feb. 1 and hosted virtually by Arkansas State University.
Competing against 18 institutions from across the South including Mississippi State University, the University of Arkansas, Louisiana State University, Middle Tennessee State University and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Newberry continued its strong season with nine total awards, including a tournament championship and an overall sweepstakes honor.
The Newberry team placed fifth in Overall Comprehensive Sweepstakes, which combines points earned across both speech and debate events.
Team members included Riley Lobash, Denim Morrison, Ashley Peterson, Paul Fisher and Nia Quimby.
Individual awards were as follows:
• Paul C. Fisher: Octafinalist, Varsity IPDA Debate
• Ashley Peterson: Top Novice in Radio Speaking; sixth place in Radio Speaking; sixth place in After-Dinner Speaking
• Denim Morrison: Tournament Champion (first place) in Persuasive Speaking; second place in After-Dinner Speaking; third place in Communication Analysis; fourth place in Informative Speaking
With these results, the Newberry College Speech and Debate Team has now earned 108 awards since the start of the competition season in late September.
The team will conclude its preseason competition at Murray State University in Kentucky before representing Newberry College on the national stage at the Pi Kappa Delta Biennial Tournament and Convention in March in Springfield, Missouri.
Learn more about the Newberry College Speech and Debate team by visiting https://www.newberry.edu/campus-life/get-involved/speech-debate-team.