Saddleback’s Speech and Debate Team Places 3rd Overall in the 2015 PSCFA Spring Championships

Samantha Dante Katie Photo.jpg

Saddleback College’s Speech and Debate team competed at Moorpark College on Friday February 20^th-22^nd. The impressive results include a 1^st place in Novice Division and 3^rd overall at the 2015 PSCFA Spring Championship Speech Tournament.

This is the first time that Saddleback has finished 3^rdoverall in the regional championships. The team beat 27 colleges and universities including: Eastern Michigan, Mt. San Antonio College, Concordia University, and Irvine Valley College.

Coach Lucas Ochoa stated, “I am glad that we finally broke through to the top three, which overall at this caliber of a tournament, is quite a feat. The students will be working incredibly hard to make some history at the State Championship tournament in Los Angeles.”

Co-Director Larry Radden stated, “This is almost an entire group of first-year student competitors in a sea of second, third, and fourth year competitors. I’m so proud of their successes and I think that everyone is really starting to understand what they’re doing and how to implement those goals. The team is focused and committed. We are really proud of our students.”

Here are the results:

1^st Place Novice Drama: Rayanna McBride

2^nd Place Novice Extemporaneous: Mackenzie Leveque

1^st Place Junior Poetry: Samantha Recchia

3^rd Place Junior Poetry: Taylor Stickle

1^st Place Novice Informative: Kyle Torres

2^nd Place Novice Impromptu: Kyle Torres

6^th Place Junior Prose: Katie Rochefort

6^th Place Open Duo Interpretation: Maggie Shephard and Scott Lankford

2^nd Place Junior Persuasion: Marlene Khamis

3^rd Place Junior Persuasion: Dante Johnson

3^rd place Junior After Dinner Speaking: Alex Sherwood

4^th place Junior After Dinner Speaking: Rayanna McBride

5^th Place Junior After Dinner Speaking: Erika Flores

4^th Place Junior Programmed Oral Interpretation: Sarah Shimizu

3^rd Place Open Communication Analysis: Patrick Leahy

2^nd Place Junior Drama: Patrick Leahy

2^nd Place Novice After Dinner Speaking: Rayanna McBride

International Public Debate Association (IPDA) Debate:

Gold Junior: Mackenzie Leveque

Gold Junior: Brian Fox

Gold Junior: Steven Plogger

Silver Junior: Veronica Collins

Bronze Open: Erika Gibson

Gold Novice: Rayanna McBride

The Saddleback Forensics Team started in the 1970s and prides itself on offering students the ability to create innovative arguments for future writing and speaking engagements to strengthen their critical thinking skills and to better communicate with others. On the forensics team, students write, rehearse, and perform at 6-7 tournaments against students from Universities and Community Colleges to qualify for the national tournament.

The students representing Saddleback at the national tournament have placed above several competitors representing institutions throughout the year, including: Concordia University, Point Loma, California State University, Los Angeles, California State University, Long Beach, and UCLA.

Located in Mission Viejo, Saddleback College provides quality higher education and training to the greater south Orange County community. Having served more than 500,000 students since 1968, Saddleback College offers over 300 degree and certificate programs to help students reach their personal, career, and educational goals. For more information, please visitwww.saddleback.edu and for Fine Arts information, please visitwww.saddleback.edu/arts.

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Photo: Samantha Recchia, Dante Johnson, Katie Rochefort (left to right)

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Nina Welch

Fine Arts Public Information Officer

Saddleback College

28000 Marguerite Parkway

Mission Viejo, CA 92692