University of Nebraska–Lincoln Speech and Debate continued its tradition of success, with each team placing in the top 10 at the respective national tournaments.

Debate placed fourth in Lincoln Douglas Debate at the National Forensic Association’s national tournament, April 18-22 at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Michigan.

Speech finished seventh at the American Forensic Association’s national speech tournament, April 6-8 at University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire. The team also placed seventh at the Interstate Oratorical Association’s national tournament, held April 26-28 in Chicago, Illinois.

“The entire coaching staff is proud of the hard work and dedication our students put in this year,” Aaron Duncan, director of Speech and Debate, said. “One thing we pride ourselves on is that we are one of a few universities in the nation to be ranked highly in both speech and debate.”

The Husker Debate Team is one of the deepest and youngest in the country. The team qualified a total of 15 students for the national tournament, setting a national record. The team was led by sophomore Grant McKeever from Olathe, Kansas, and junior Zachary Wallenburg from Lenexa, Kanas.

Overall, seven Huskers posted winning records and advanced to elimination rounds. Wallenburg advanced to the quarterfinals and McKeever made it to the final four. This was the third consecutive year and fifth in six years that Nebraska has had a student make the final four.

The debate team was led to success by Justin Kirk, director of debate, and Zachary Thornhill, graduate assistant coach. Kirk praised the leadership of the older students on the team and the dedication of the younger students.

“Our first-year students are incredible,” Kirk said. “They work in such synergy with each other, it is a sight to behold.”

Courtesy

Speech team members who competed at the national tournament are (front row, from left) Elizabeth Harding, Caitlyn Enderle, Gwen Leuschen, Hailey Cheek, Sydney Kwasa, Kayli Pham, Kaitlyn Peterson, (middle row, from left) Eliana Siebe-Walles, Tamyia Bender, Emma Cavalier, Janana Khattak, Maddie Stoerp, Shelby Hindman, Victoria Thomas, coach Allison Bonander, (back row, from left) Assistant coach Cassidy Emmerich, Kallum Osborn, David Swotek, Marcus Cuerton, Zoey Moser, Reed Greger, assistant coach Daniel Wheaton, assistant coach Isabella Scaturro, and director Aaron Duncan.

Nebraska qualified 20 students to the national speech tournament, where they competed against 57 universities and colleges across the country. The speech team’s seventh-place finish was highlighted by senior Janana Khattak of Lincoln who was the national runner-up in communication analysis, and senior Victoria Thomas, who placed sixth in program oral interpretation. Senior Eliana Siebe-Walles of Omaha and Khattak were also selected to the National All-American Team. Only 16 students in the nation achieved All-American status this year.

The team advanced 19 events to elimination rounds, a team record, and five events to the semifinal round. The team also set a record for first-year students advancing to elimination rounds. First-year students Elizabeth Harding of Schuyler, Nebraska, and Kaitlyn Peterson of Gering, Nebraska, advanced to the semifinal round in extemporaneous speaking and dramatic interpretation. Fellow first-year student Tamyia Bender of Omaha was a quarterfinalist in poetry interpretation.

Cassidy Emmerich, assistant coach, was also awarded the organization’s Outstanding New Coach Award.

The speech team Allison Bonander, and assistant coaches Cassidy Emmerich and Isabella Scaturro.

“The UNL Speech and Debate Team has been around for 152 years,” Bonander, director of speech, said. “We are humbled to have the opportunity to participate and add to the legacy of this great institution and team.”

“We appreciate the awards, but our students are not defined by them,” Duncan said. “They are defined by their hard work, thoughtfulness, resilience, and selflessness. Their success is the product of extraordinary effort, but also the product of a great university that values research, integrity, and the search for knowledge. UNL is an institution that celebrates debate, discussion, and dialogue. We owe a great debt to the Department of Communication Studies, the College of Arts and Sciences, alumni, and the Chancellor’s Office.”

The Speech and Debate team is part of the Department of Communication Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. The department explores human communication as it shapes and is shaped by relationships, institutions, and societies. Its main areas of expertise are interpersonal and family communication, organizational communication, and rhetoric and public culture. Find more information on the department and the Speech and Debate Team online.