February 28, 2002

BOISE STATE DEBATE TEAM RANKED NINTH IN THE NATION

The Boise State debate team is ranked ninth in the nation in the latest National Parliamentary Debate Association standings. This marks the second consecutive season that Boise State has been ranked in the top 10 nationally. Previously ranked 15th, Boise State moved up seven spots on the strength of an outstanding performance at last week’s Whitman College Forensics Tournament. Several Boise State debate teams have contributed to this season’s success, with the most coming from the No. 1 open division team of Imran Ali (sr., Eagle) and Misti Rutledge (sr., Kimberley) and the top novice teams of Blake Lingle (jr., Boise) and Lacey Rammell-O’Brien (fr., Eagle), and Patrick Connor (sr., Boise) and Nate Peterson (sr., Pocatello).

The National Parliamentary Debate Association (NPDA) is the largest collegiate debate organization in North America with 322 member institutions. The standings reflect the number of wins the team has amassed in collegiate competition during the 2001-02 season. A school’s four best tournaments are counted. Boise State was ranked as high as sixth by the NPDA last year, and finished the season at number 17.

The top 10 schools in the National Parliamentary Debate Association rankings for Feb. 27, 2002 were:

1. University of California - Berkeley 90
2. Lewis & Clark College (Ore.) 79
3. Notre Dame 78
4. South Orange College 78
5. Cal State - Long Beach 75
6. El Camino College 75
7. US Air Force Academy 74
8. Truman State University (Mo.) 72
9. Boise State University 71
10. Point Loma Nazarene (Calif.) 69

Visit www.acns.bethel.edu for complete rankings.

Contacts:
Marty Most
Communication
(208) 426-1920

Media Contact:
Kathleen Mortensen
Boise State communications and marketing
(208) 426-3275