John R. Park Debate Society Concludes Record-Setting Semester

On December 2-4, the John R. Park Debate Society completed its Fall 2016 competitive season at the Western Wyoming and Central Wyoming Swing hosted by Western Wyoming Community College and Central Wyoming College. The competition featured 10 colleges and universities, including University of Wyoming, The Colorado College, Utah State University, and Colorado State University-Pueblo. 21 students attended the tournament and excelled across a variety of competitive events, ending what has been the team’s most successful semester in its history. Below you will find an overview of some key Fall 2016 accomplishments, as well as the specific results from the past weekend.

Fall 2016 Overview

-The John R. Park Debate Society has accrued more points toward end-of-season national rankings in a single semester than in any year of competition in its history.

-The John R. Park Debate Society’s win percentage in debate exceeds 75%.

-A team from the The John R. Park Debate Society won 80% of the debate tournaments attended by the team.

-Members of the team have individually won nearly a 100 different awards across speaking and debate events.

-The John R. Park Debate Society has set a fall semester record by qualifying 5 students in 7 events to nationals.

-The Debate Society hosted 5 different campaign debates for state legislative office.

-The Debate Society hosted the Rwandan National Debate Team

-The Debate Society hosted its largest high school competition in history (1000+ students and teachers) and the largest in the State of Utah.

Western Wyoming/Central Wyoming Swing Results 

Overall Awards

1st Place – Tournament Sweepstakes

1st Place – Debate Sweepstakes

1st Place – Individual Event Sweepstakes (Part One)

1st Place – Individual Event Sweepstakes (Part Two)

Debate Awards

Co-Champions/Finalists – Open Parliamentary Debate – Jose Soto & Braden Hooton

Co-Champions/Finalists – Open Parliamentary Debate – Chris de Freitas & Brooks Bergmann

Semifinalists – Open Parliamentary Debate – Gabi Piril & William Doyle

Quarterfinalists – Open Parliamentary Debate – Morgan Vanderveen & Averie Vockel

Quarterfinalists – Open Parliamentary Debate – Maxton Cline & Bryson Griffith

Quarterfinalists – Open Parliamentary Debate – Shad Wojciechowski & Courtney Nilson

Quarterfinalists – Open Parliamentary Debate – Alex Cadena & Saige Miller

Octafinalists – Open Parliamentary Debate – Jacob McShane & Anthony Iovino

Debate Speaking Awards

1st Place Speaker – Open Parliamentary Debate – Jose Soto
2nd Place Speaker – Open Parliamentary Debate – William Doyle
2nd Place Speaker – Junior Parliamentary Debate – Brooks Bergmann
4th Place Speaker – Open Parliamentary Debate – Chris de Freitas
5th Place Speaker – Open Parliamentary Debate – Maxton Cline
6th Place Speaker – Open Parliamentary Debate – Braden Hooton
7th Place Speaker – Open Parliamentary Debate – Bryson Griffith
8th Place Speaker – Open Parliamentary Debate – Saige Miller
10th Place Speaker – Open Parliamentary Debate – Gabi Piril

Individual Event Awards

First Tournament – December 3, 2016

1st Place – Extemporaneous Speaking – Maxton Cline
1st Place – Impromptu Speaking – William Doyle
1st Place – Poetry Interpretation – Jose Soto
1st Place – Programmed Oral Interpretation – Jose Soto
2nd Place – Dramatic Interpretation – Zachary Ray
2nd Place – Persuasive Speaking – Morgan Vanderveen
2nd Place – Prose Interpretation – Zachary Ray
3rd Place – Communication Analysis – Chris de Freitas
3rd Place – Persuasive Speaking – Maria DeMarco
4th Place – Extemporaneous Speaking – Shad Wojciechowski
4th Place – Persuasive Speaking – Jacob McShane
4th Place – Programmed Oral Interpretation – Jay Meza
5th Place – Informative Speaking – Maria DeMarco
6th Place – Impromptu Speaking – Jay Meza
6th Place – Informative Speaking – Saige Miller

Second Tournament – December 4, 2016

1st Place – Dramatic Interpretation – Zachary Ray
1st Place – Extemporaneous Speaking – Shad Wojciechowski
1st Place – Persuasive Speaking – Morgan Vanderveen
1st Place – Poetry Interpretation – Jose Soto
1st Place – Programmed Oral Interpretation – Jose Soto
2nd Place – Communication Analysis – Chris de Freitas
2nd Place – Persuasive Speaking – Jacob McShane
2nd Place – Prose Interpretation – Zachary Ray
3rd Place – Impromptu Speaking – Jay Meza
3rd Place – Informative Speaking – Maria DeMarco
3rd Place – Persuasive Speaking – Maria DeMarco
3rd Place – Programmed Oral Interpretation – Gabi Piril
4th Place – Duo Interpretation – Gabi Piril & Alex Cadena
4th Place – Extemporaneous Speaking – Courtney Nilson
4th Place – Impromptu Speaking – Maxton Cline
4th Place – Programmed Oral Interpretation – Jay Meza
6th Place – Persuasive Speaking – Braden Hooton