That's So SA
Speech & Debate

Speech & Debate wins 1st, 2nd, and 3rd at Santa Clara Invitational

SA Speech and Debate had an incredible weekend at the Santa Clara University Dempsey Cronin Invitational. Competitors endured three days of competition on the SCU campus and emerged victorious: Sonoma Academy won 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place trophies at the tournament, and had semifinalists in multiple events.

The 1st place trophy went to Adri Kornfein '21, who was recognized as the tournament's best speaker in varsity debate. Adri was given top marks from her judges and outranked all 70 competitors in her division! This incredible honor is a product of Adri's hard work throughout the season. 

The 2nd place trophy was won by Christian Hernandez '20, who wowed his judges with an emotional piece in varsity Original Prose and Poetry. This unique event allows competitors to craft and perform their original work, and judges were moved by Christian's story and delivery. 

3rd place was awarded to the team of Iris Anderson '23 and Maddy Jannes '22, who competed in novice debate. After a strong showing in their preliminary rounds, Iris and Maddy were one of just eight teams to advance to elimination rounds. After winning their quarterfinal debate, they advanced to semifinals where they ended their run on a split 2-1 decision from the judging panel. Iris and Maddy were awarded 3rd place trophies in their divison, and also were recognized as 6th and 9th place speakers respectively. 

Semifinalists in speech included Bert Garner '21 in varsity Impromptu, Veronica Aranda '21 in varsity Dramatic Interpretation, and Anika McCarthy Belash '20/Emma Hartley '20 in varsity Duo Interpretation. For all four competitors, this was an impressive finish in their highly competitive events.
Christian and Bert also received bids to the Tournament of Champions, the most prestigious national championship in the country! Students must obtain two bids to compete at the TOC. We have multiple bid tournaments left in the season, and given the track record of these two students, it is probable that Sonoma Academy will be present at nationals this year.

This weekend would not have been possible without Rodney Fierce and Travis Fierce! Next up, debate heads to the Alta Silver and Black Invitational in Sandy, UT.
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