The Forensics team from Moorpark College took second place overall at the Phi Rho Pi National Championships last weekend held in Chicago.

The team brought home 19 medals, as well as the Sylvia Mariner Cumulative Sweepstakes Award, becoming the only team to win the prestigious award seven times.

According to Coach Rolland Petrello in a press release, the Sylvia Mariner Cumulative Sweepstakes Award is for cumulative success over a period of years based on a school’s point totals from national tournaments. Each year, the scores are added to the previous year’s scores until they win the award.

Los Angeles Valley College took first place with Southeastern Illinois taking third and Orange Coast College from Calif. rounding out the top four.

Last month, the team won their fifth straight state championship. Long time Director of the team, James Wyman, was also honored at the state by having the award for the top debater in the tournament named after him.

Results

Justin Harris & Chris Maciel – Gold in Parliamentary Debate

Matt Strawbridge & Melissa Youngern – Bronze in Parliamentary Debate

Jacob Crooks & Scott Leonard – Bronze in Parliamentary Debate

Dave Norris – – Bronze in Parliamentary Debate with a partner from another college.

Reader’s Theatre – Silver Medal – Annie Block-Weiss, Tiffanie Daniels, & Rachel Borbas

– Chris Maciel – Gold Medal in Lincoln Douglas Debate

– Matt Strawbridge – Gold Medals in Impromptu and Extemporaneous Speaking and Bronze in Lincoln Douglas Debate

– Scott Leonard – Silver Medal in Impromptu Speaking

– Justin Harris – Bronze Medal in Lincoln Douglas Debate

– Tiffanie Daniels – Silver Medal in Program Oral Interpretation, Bronze in Poetry Interpretation

– Jamie Maarten – Silver Medal in Informative Speaking, Bronze Medals in Persuasive Speaking and Communication Analysis

– Annie Block-Weiss – Bronze Medal in Prose Interpretation

Other Team Members who contributed to the win but did not win a medal:

Allison Searcy & Estevan Valdes