Novemeber 11, 2003

BOISE STATE FORENSICS TEAM WINS OREGON TOURNAMENT

The Boise State University debate and speech team won the University of Oregon Forensics Tournament, held October 24-26 in Eugene, Ore., with a record-setting performance. The Talkin’ Broncos scored a school record 228 points and emerged as the top team in a field of 26 colleges and universities from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, California, Utah, Nevada and Montana. With the victory, Boise State takes the early lead in the Northwest Forensics Conference Division I standings.

Leading the Boise State scoring were Patrick Connor (senior, Boise), Ken Rock (senior, Coeur d’Alene) and Blake Lingle (senior, Boise). Connor won first-place awards in rhetorical analysis, novice persuasive speaking and novice informative speaking, and teamed with Greg Sasser (senior, Boise) to place second in novice debate. Rock won two first place awards, one in open informative speaking and another in prose interpretation, and added a third-place award in open persuasive speaking. Lingle reached the finals of four events, placing second in junior informative speaking, second in persuasive speaking, fourth in prose interpretation, fourth in poetry interpretation and along with partner Nicki Napier (sophomore, Idaho Falls), finished ninth in debate. Napier was another point leader for Boise State, placing first in junior informative speaking and second in dramatic interpretation.

Other top scorers for Boise State were Kristin Davidson (sophomore, Boise) and Nancy Henke (junior, Boise). Davidson was second in open persuasive speaking, third in program oral interpretation, and fourth in informative speaking. Henke placed first in program oral interpretation, fourth in prose interpretation, and fifth in open persuasive speaking.

Liz McDonagh (freshman, Boise) placed first in novice extemporaneous speaking and third in junior persuasive speaking, and Lacey Rammell-O’Brien (sophomore, Eagle) was second in prose interpretation and fifth in impromptu speaking. Together, McDonagh and Rammell-O’Brien finished fifth in debate. Ali Ishaq (junior, Boise) placed third in poetry interpretation and fifth in junior informative speaking. Ishaq and Annah Merkley (sophomore, Pocatello) placed ninth in debate, and Merkley placed sixth in program oral interpretation. Nate Schunke (junior, Boise) was third in informative speaking and sixth in extemporaneous speaking. Rounding out the Boise State scoring were Nancy Greenway (senior, Caldwell) who was fifth in junior informative speaking, and Christen VanWalraven (freshman, Sugar City), a finalist in prose interpretation. Four Boise State debaters were named to the All-Tournament Debate Team: Connor, Ishaq, Sasser and Lingle.

Boise State travels to Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston in two weeks for the second Northwest Forensic Conference tournament of the season. The team closes the semester’s competition schedule at the Red River Tournament in Shreveport, La., hosted by Louisiana Tech and Louisiana State University.

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Marty Most

Communication

426-1920

Kathleen Craven

communications and marketing

426-3275