Category: National Circuit Results Page 2 of 13

On October 24, 2024

63 extempers, mostly from the Northeast, entered the 54th edition of the New York City Invitational last weekend in New York City. The Bronx High School of Science hosted the event.

The tournament ended with a final round clash of defending national champions. Tea Shouldice of Half Hollow Hills High School East (NY), the defending National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA) national champion in United States Extemp, defeated the defending NSDA International Extemp champion Anthony Babu of Concord-Carlisle High School (NY) by one rank. Shouldice and Babu each won two first place ranks among the five judge panel in finals and Babu won the final round by one rank. However, due to the tournament’s cumulative nature through preliminary rounds Shouldice was declared the winner.

Al Zaidi of Holy Trinity Episcopal School (FL), a semi-finalist at Yale, placed third. Zaidi finished five ranks back of Shouldice.

The only sophomore in the final round, Daphne Kalir-Starr of the College Preparatory School (CA), also a Yale semi-finalist, finished fourth. Kalir-Starr took the one first place rank in the final round that was not won by Shouldice and Babu, needing it to win a tiebreaker over Aparna Iyer of Ridge High School (NJ). Iyer was in their second National Points Race final of the year after finishing third at Yale.

Kai Forbach of Durham Academy (NC) finished sixth.

The tournament was a fifth tier event in the National Points Race so only those extempers who reached the final round will earn points. Shouldice will earn 40 points for her win. The first National Points Race standings of the season will be posted tomorrow evening.

Here are the results of the 2024 New York City Invitational (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 Yale Invitational: Zhang Wins Second Consecutive Title in Another Close Finish

On September 26, 2024

A massive field of 114 extempers gathered for last weekend’s Yale Invitational, the kickoff to the extemporaneous speaking season in New England and the second National Points Race event on the 2024-2025 calendar.

The in-person event had familiar faces as three of the finalists were also in the final round of the online National Speech and Debate Season Opener. Robert Zhang of Elkins High School (TX) notched another national circuit win, winning a tiebreaker over fellow Texan Waleed Haider of Hendrickson High School. Zhang and Haider, who entered elimination rounds with six others in first place, ended the tournament with identical composites in the cumulative tournament that counts ranks from preliminary rounds through the final round. The tie was broken by final round performance, which Zhang won by two ranks. That happened despite Haider capturing two first place ranks among the five final round judges, making him the only finalist to win multiple first place ranks. Zhang follows in the footsteps of Amy Cao of Ridge High School (NJ), who won the first two National Points Race tournaments last year.

One rank behind Zhang and Haider was Aparna Iyer of Ridge High School, who came close to delivering the school its second Yale championship in as many years. And two more ranks behind was Charlotte Reitman of NSU University School (FL). Reitman won two National Points Race events last year at the Florida Blue Key and the University of Kentucky Tournament of Champions (TOC).

Anish Mehta of Scarsdale High School (NY) and Sahana Srikanth of Mason High School (OH) finished much further back of Zhang by 17 and 22 ranks, respectively. Srikanth was making a second National Points Race final round this season after coming within one rank of defeating Zhang at the Season Opener.

Tea Shouldice of Half Hollow Hills East High School (NY), the defending National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA) National Champion in United States Extemp, started her season off with a semi-final finish.

Scarsdale High School the best showing among schools in attendance, placing six extempers in the elimination rounds.

Since Yale was a fourth tier event all of the extempers who reached finals and semi-finals will earn points. The first National Points Race standings will be released after the New York City Invitational in a few weeks, thereby giving the initial release more data.

2024 National Speech and Debate Season Opener Hosted by the University of Kentucky: Zhang Claims First Victory of the New Season, Third Judge Denies Srikanth Victory

On September 12, 2024

The 2024-2025 national circuit season started virtually last weekend with the National Speech and Debate Season Opener hosted by the University of Kentucky. 56 extempers were part of this year’s tournament, substantially more than the last few editions since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The event’s online nature allowed extempers from across the country to participate in the first National Points Race event of the year. And three extempers from the final top 25 made the final round. Robert Zhang of Elkins High School (TX), who finished eighth in the standings last season, won the tournament, defeating Sahana Srikanth of Mason High School (OH) by two ranks. Srikanth took two of the three available first place ranks in the final round but was undone by a sixth place rank from the other judge. That resulted in a composite score of eight, which Zhang overcame with second place ranks from all three judges.

Waleed Haider of Hendrickson High School (TX), the winner of a National Points Race event last season and the sixth place finisher in the National Points Race, notched a third place finish. Haider finished four ranks behind Zhang’s winning score.

Kajal Parmar of Cary Academy (NC) was the other extemper from last year’s top 25 in the final round. Parmer finished twenty-first in last year’s National Points Race and ended the Season Opener one rank outside of the top three.

Andrew Zheng of Acalanes High School (CA) took the other available first place rank in the final round but the other two judges did not concur with that ranking so he finished fifth, one place behind Parmar and four ranks ahead of sixth place finisher Eashan Kosaraju of Solon High School (OH).

Other prominent finishers at the tournament included a quarter-finalist placing for defending NSDA International Extemp National Champion Anthony Babu of Concord-Carlisle High School (MA) and Ellie Sohn of Flintridge Preparatory School (CA). Sohn finished last year’s National Points Race in nineteenth place.

The Speech and Debate Season Opener was a fifth tier event so only the extempers who reached the final round will earn points. The first National Points Race standings will be released after the New York City Invitational in October.

Here are the results of the 2024 National Speech and Debate Season Opener Hosted by the University of Kentucky (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 Extemp TOC: Morel Returns Plano West to the Winner’s Circle, Beats 40 Other Competitors to Win the Season’s Second Major

By admin

On May 21, 2024

In Extemp TOC, National Circuit Results

This year’s Tournament of Champions of Extemporaneous Speaking, hosted by Northwestern University, attracted a disappointing field of only 41 extempers for the national extemp circuit’s second major championship.

Sasha Morel of Plano West Senior High School (TX) won a decisive victory, beating Kajal Parmar of Cary Academy (NC) by eight ranks in the final round. Morel earned five of the seven available first place ranks.

Devarsh Borah of Edina High School (MN) rounded out the top three with a third place finish. Borah finished four ranks behind Parmar.

#12 Taylor Burris of the Potomac School (VA) was the highest ranked competitor in the field and made the final round, placing sixth. The only other ranked competitor in the National Points Race who made elimination rounds was #18 Kate Liu of Plano East Senior High School (TX), who dropped in semi-finals.

Even though the field did not attract many of the extempers in the top 25 of the National Points Race, the final round featured extempers from five states.

Plano West had two extempers in the final as Abraham Zhang took fifth.

Morel is the first Plano West extemper to win the TOC since Jacqueline Wei in 2019. Plano West has had three champions at the event, including Morel, since 2018. The school also won the tournament’s sweepstakes award.

All of the extempers that reached elimination rounds will earn National Points Race points.

Here are the results of the 2024 Tournament of Champions of Extemporaneous Speaking (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 University of Kentucky Tournament of Champions: Reitman Wins Second National Points Event of the Year; Haider Takes Second

On April 25, 2024

In National Circuit Results, UK TOC

The national circuit resumed after taking a two-month pause for state championship competitions. 89 competitors attended this year’s University of Kentucky Tournament of Champions (TOC), kicking off the post-season phase of the National Points Race.

#17 Charlotte Reitman of NSU University School (FL) won her second National Points Race tournament of the season, winning the final round over #4 Waleed Haider of Hendrickson High School (TX) by two ranks. Nick Pienkos of Marquette University School (WI) finished third, one rank behind Haider and three back of Reitman.

Reitman is the first Florida extemper to win the UK TOC since Justin Graham of Trinity Preparatory School, who won in 2016.

The final round was close as five extempers each received a first place rank. What clinched the title for Reitman was receiving two second place ranks while other competitors received a worse mixture of ranks from the panel.

#15 Tyler Crivella of Seven Lakes High School (TX) finished fourth and #19 Ellie Sohn of Flintidge Preparatory School (CA) took fifth. Crivella was appearing in his third National Points Race final round of the year while Sohn was appearing in her fourth.

Arya Goyal of Scarsdale High School (NY) finished sixth.

Several other extempers in the top 25 made the trip to Lexington for last weekend’s event. #9 Abhijay Rana of Bellarmine College Preparatory (CA) dropped in semi-finals while #2 Brandon Cheng of Flintridge Preparatory, #12 Taylor Burris of the Potomac School (VA), and #16 Austin Bauman of Bellarmine College Preparatory made it to the quarter-final round.

Since the UK TOC was a third tier event, Reitman will receive 100 points for winning and all competitors who reached elimination rounds will earn National Points Race points. The next National Points Race competition will take place next weekend in Evanston, Illinois when Northwestern University hosts the Tournament of Champions of Extemporaneous Speaking, the season’s second major championship.

Here are the results of the 2024 University of Kentucky Tournament of Champions (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 California Invitational: Bauman Retains Bellarmine’s Hold on Championship, Spoils Tsoi’s Bid for Two National Points Race Wins by 1 Rank

On February 29, 2024

Bellarmine College Preparatory (CA) has made it a habit of winning the California Invitational, taking three of the last five titles and this year was no different as Austin Bauman outlasted 129 other extempers to win the last National Points Race tournament of the regular season.

The tournament was cumulative from prelims and Bauman’s lead going into the final round allowed him to take the title as he won by one rank over #13 Evelyn Tsoi of Velasquez Academy (CA), who was appearing in her third National Points Race final round this season. Tsoi, who won the United States Extemp half of the James Logan MLK Invitational last month, won the final round but that was not enough to claim the overall tournament title even though Bauman took fourth in finals.

Like last year’s tournament, the final rankings of the tournament were close as #15 Abhijay Rana of Bellarmine, the winner of the International Extemp half at MLK, was a mere three ranks behind Tsoi. And Katherine Peckham of Westwood High School (TX), the only non-Californian in the final round, was one rank behind Rana. Peckham was runner-up to Tsoi in the final round after taking three first place ranks from the five judge panel and they made the biggest leap in the tournament from prelims to finals after they only cleared into elimination rounds by two ranks. Only a fourth and fifth place rank in the final round kept them out of the top three.

Bauman’s win was the second in a row for Bellarmine at the tournament after #7 Rohit Vakkalagadda won last season. Vakkalagadda’s bid for a second consecutive title, a feat that has not been done in 11 years, ended in prelims as he missed the break to elimination rounds by one rank.

Ethan Chen of Monte Vista High School (CA) took fifth place, finishing six ranks behind Peckham. And #17 Ellie Sohn of Flintridge Preparatory School (CA) reached her third National Points Race final round of the year and placed sixth. Sohn led the tournament after prelims.

Isaiah Sohn of Redlands High School (CA) and Ali Malik of Monta Vista High School (CA) were not able to replicate their final round finishes at last year’s California Invitational. Sohn dropped in quarter-finals and Mailk in octa-finals.

#23 Joy Hu of the Harker School in the tournament field but was not able to reach elimination rounds. Like Vakkalagadda, she missed the break by one rank.

Since the California Invitational was a third tier event, Bauman will receive 100 points for his victory and all extempers who reached quarter-finals will receive points. New National Points Race standings will be posted by next weekend.

Here are the results of the 2024 California Invitational (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 Harvard National Speech & Debate Tournament: Peddi Breaks Through at Last Regular Season National Points Race Tournament, Wins Final Four Against Three National Points Race Champions

On February 27, 2024

239 extempers made up the largest field of a National Points Race this season when Harvard University hosted its annual National Speech and Debate Tournament on February 17-20 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As a result of the high number of entries, the tournament was a second tier event.

#1 Sruti Peddi of BASIS Scottsdale (AZ) won the championship in commanding fashion, earning a six-rank final round victory that saw her earn four of the five available first place ranks. It is Peddi’s first National Points Race title this year after she made four previous final round appearances. Her victory marks the second consecutive time that an Arizona extemper has won Harvard as McKinley Paltzik won the title last season. And the 150 points she earned with this victory will enlarge her National Points Race lead.

Peddi won a final round against three other National Points Race winners. Second place was earned by #11 Waleed Haider of Hendrickson High School (TX), who won the United States Extemp half of the University of Texas Longhorn Classic in December. Haider swept up a majority of the second place ranks in the final round and was five ranks clear of the rest of the competition.

George Mason University Patriot Games winner Siri Ural of Shrewsbury High School (MA) earned a third place ranking, three ranks ahead of #18 Taylor Burris of the Potomac School (VA) and four ranks ahead of Stanford International Extemp winner #2 Brandon Cheng of Flintridge Preparatory School (CA). Burris and Cheng were separated by a mere rank for fourth place. Burris made her third National Points Race final round of the season while Cheng made his fifth.

Paul Fertig of Mounds Park Academy (MN) finished sixth, reaching a National Points Race final round for the second time this season. Fertig also finished sixth at the Apple Valley Minneapple Speech Tournament two weeks before Harvard.

While the final round featured a good number of previous winners this season, many ranked extempers were found in earlier elimination rounds and will earn National Points Race points. #12 Skyler Burrus of the American Heritage School – Palm Beach (FL) and #14 Kate Liu of Plano East High School (TX) made semi-finals, Glenbrooks champion #6 Lishore Kumar of Tomball Memorial High School (TX) and #25 Ishika Kothari of Plano East reached quarter-finals, and #3 Robert Zhang of Elkins High School (TX) qualified for octa-finals.

Due to the large number of competitors at Harvard, a few ranked competitors missed qualifying for elimination rounds. These included #10 Amy Cao of Ridge High School (NJ) and #19 Ronak Patel of American Heritage School – Broward (FL).

Here are the results of the 2024 Harvard National Speech and Debate Tournament (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 Stanford Invitational: Flintridge Preparatory’s Cheng and Sohn Have Impressive Performances; Cheng and Abrams win IX and USX in Online Event

On February 15, 2024

The 37th annual Stanford Invitational took place online last weekend, hosted by Stanford University’s Stanford Student Enterprises division. The online nature of the tournament made it accessible to extempers throughout the country and 76 competitors battled in International Extemp and 58 entries did the same in United States Extemp.

Flintridge Preparatory School (CA) had a great tournament. #4 Brandon Cheng and Ellie Sohn led the way, taking the top two spots in International Extemp. The duo also placed second and fourth, respectively, in United States Extemp, giving them the best performances across both extemp categories.

Cheng captured his first National Points Race title in four final round appearances, beating Sohn by five ranks in the final round. Cheng only took one first place rank but his consistency was much better than other competitors, solidifying the win.

Second through sixth place in International Extemp was separated by a mere four ranks, attesting to how judges split in their decisions. Nathan Cai of Brophy College Preparatory (AZ) was third, Prajval Kesireddy of Solon High School (OH) was fourth, James Logan MLK United States Extemp winner #16 Evelyn Tsoi of Velasquez Academy (CA) was fifth, and Joy Hu of the Harker School (CA) placed sixth.

Kesireddy captured two of the five available first place ranks in the final round but scooped up fifth and sixth place ranks from the other three judges, dooming their composite score.

In United States Extemp, Matthew Abrams of George Washington High School (CO) won a four-rank win over Cheng.

The battle for second through fourth place was tightly contested as Cheng finished second by one rank over Hu and Hu was two ranks ahead of Sohn. Aside from Cheng and Sohn, Hu was the only other extemper to final in both extemp categories.

Robert Fields of the Harker School (CA) and Samuel Ma of Bellarmine College Preparatory (CA) had a tight battle for fifth, with Fields finishing ahead by one rank.

#1 Sruti Peddi of BASIS Scottsdale was in the field but dropped in the semi-finals of both categories. #13 Kate Liu of Plano East High School (TX) entered International Extemp but did not clear to elimination rounds and #14 Abhijay Rana of Bellarmine College Preparatory (CA), who won James Logan’s MLK tournament last month in International Extemp, was eliminated in the semi-final round of International Extemp.

All of the finalists will receive National Points Race points since Stanford was a fifth tier event this year. To prevent double counting, an extemper’s highest finish will be awarded points. Due to the number of entries and if the tournament is online for 2024-2025, it is in the running to move up a tier because of the wide geographic participation of this year’s event compared to prior editions.

Here are the results of the 2024 Stanford Invitational (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 Apple Valley Minneapple Speech Tournament: Lee and Zylstra Notch First National Circuit Wins of the Season

On February 15, 2024

This season was the first that the Apple Valley Minneapple Speech Tournament has been part of the National Points Race. The tournament took place on February 3 in Apple Valley, Minnesota and extempers had the chance to earn points in International and United States Extemp. As expected, the tournament was a big draw for Minnesota schools as well as other schools from Midwestern states like Nebraska and Indiana.

In International Extemp Eunsol Lee of Woodbury High School (MN) captured the title, defeating Mina Bhargava of Edina High School (MN) and Anish Amin of Millard North High School (NE) by two ranks. Bhargava and Amin tied for second, with Bhargava winning a judges’ preference tiebreaker 3-2.

Claire Han of Munster High School (IN), who was previously ranked in the top 25 of the National Points Race, finished fourth, three ranks back of Lee.

Devanshu Shah of Eden Prairie High School (MN) placed fifth and Soren Peterson of Stillwater Area High School (MN) was sixth.

Nick Zylstra of Eastview High School (MN) won a hard fought battle in United States Extemp, defeating Aaimah Khawaja of Lakeville North High School (MN) by one rank. Zylstra only took one of five available first place ranks in the final round but that was enough to win as a fifth place rank doomed Khawaja’s composite score.

Kate Westlake of Woodbury High School finished third, two ranks ahead of fourth place finisher Nithin Palani of Eden Prairie High School and three ranks ahead of fifth place finisher Ella Larson of Moorhead High School (MN).

Paul Fertig of Mounds Park Academy (MN) was the sixth place finisher.

Since the Apple Valley Minneapple was a fifth tier event, all of the finalists in International and United States Extemp will earn National Points Race points. Lee and Zylstra will receive 40 points for their wins.

Here are the results of the 2024 Apple Valley Minneapple Speech Tournament (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 Barkley Forum: Lee Rolls to a Second National Points Race Victory; Burrus Wins Tiebreaker over Reitman for Second

On February 1, 2024

Last weekend the 69th edition of the Barkley Forum took place on the campus of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. 88 extempers from all regions of the country came to compete in a fourth tier National Points Race event.

#9 Katherine Lee of Plano West Senior High School was the highest ranked competitor in the field and she lived up to her ranking, winning the tournament by nine ranks. Lee took four of the five available first place ranks in the final round, defeating Skyler Burrus of American Heritage School – Palm Beach (FL).

The victory was Lee’s second of the season as she was the winner of the International Extemp half of the University of Texas-Longhorn Classic in early December.

#13 Charlotte Reitman of the University School (FL) notched her third top three placing in a National Points Race event in as many final round appearances. Reitman tied Burrus in the final round with a 17 rank composite score but lost a judges preference tiebreaker 3-2.

Southern competitors made up the bottom half of the final round. Noah Darby of St. Thomas More Catholic High School (LA) was fourth, Al Zaidi of Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy (FL) was fifth, and Charlie Hui of Westwood High School (TX) was sixth. Darby finished three ranks ahead of Zaidi and Hui and Zaidi earned a fifth place tiebreak through another 3-2 judges decision.

Plano West maintained its strong record on the national circuit, placing three competitors in the top 12. No other school matched that mark or had more than one competitor reach semi-finals.

Lee will earn 70 points toward the National Points Race for winning, and all of the competitors who reached the semi-final round will be credited with points. New National Points Race standings will go up tomorrow.

Here are the results of the 2024 Barkley Forum (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 James Logan MLK Invitational: Rana Defeats Teammate D’Souza via Tiebreaker in IX; Final Round Victory Propels Tsoi to USX Championship

On January 18, 2024

The West Coast swing of the National Points Race began last weekend at James Logan High School in Union City, California. The school’s James Logan MLK Invitational attracted a wide variety of California schools, with a few Texas extempers mixed in.

The tournament split extempers into International and United States Extemp categories. International Extemp was dominated by Bellarmine College Preparatory (CA), which had three of the seven finalists. Teammates Abhijay Rana and Shamit D’Souza tied for first with an all-tournament cumulative score of 39 ranks. They also tied with a composite score of 15 in finals. When tiebreakers were applied, Rana defeated D’Souza to win the championship.

Isaiah Sohn of Redlands High School (CA) was runner-up last year at the MLK in International Extemp. This year he finished third, two ranks back of Rana and D’Souza.

The battle for fourth place was tightly contested by Ali Malik of Monta Vista High School (CA), Fiona Yan of the Harker School (CA), and Ellie Sohn of Flintridge Preparatory School (CA). Each extemper was separated by only one cumulative rank, with Malik placing fourth, Yan fifth, and Sohn sixth.

United States Extemp was not as closely contested as its global counterpart. Evelyn Tsoi of Velasquez Academy (CA) claimed a six-rank victory over Kevin Lu of Bellarmine College Preparatory, winning the final round by that same margin.

Third place was taken by Sovia Villagra of Gabrielino High School (CA), who was ten ranks back of Tsoi.

The fight for fourth place was also fierce in United States Extemp. Yan, the only extemper to final in both categories, won the spot over Aadi Chauhan of Bellarmine College Preparatory.

While none of the finalists at the MLK Invitational were ranked in the top 25, there were a few extempers in the field that just missed out on claiming points. #4 Brandon Cheng of Flintridge was eliminated in the quarter-final round of International Extemp and #9 Katherine Lee of Plano West Senior High School (TX) went out in the quarter-final round of United States Extemp.

This was the first year that the MLK Invitational counts as a fourth tier tournament in the National Points Race. All of the competitors who reached the semi-final and final rounds will receive credit in the standings. To prevent double counting, an extemper’s top finish will count toward this year’s standings.

Here are the results of the 2024 James Logan MLK Invitational (Click here for tab sheet):

2024 Montgomery Bell Academy Extemp Round Robin: Zhang Closes Out Peddi for Illinois First Round Robin Championship

On January 11, 2024

The first major tournmament of the season, the Montgomery Bell Academy Extemp Round Robin, took place last weekend on the campus of Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, Tennessee. The tournament is one the most prestigious on the calendar as sixteen of the nation’s best extempers are invited to compete each year.

As expected, this year’s tournament went down to the wire. #13 April Zhang of Neuqua Valley High School High School (IL) became the first extemper from her state to win the Round Robin, defeating #3 Sruti Peddi of BASIS Scottsdale (AZ) by two ranks. Peddi made a spirited charge over the last two rounds of the tournament, collecting four first place ranks from six judges. However, Zhang never earned a rank lower than a two over those last two rounds, blunting Peddi’s momentum.

It was the second National Points Race top six placing for Zhang this year after finishing runner-up at the Yale Invitational.

#17 Rohit Vakkalagadda of Bellarmine College Preparatory (CA) was the tournament’s third place finisher. After a rough start in the tournament, Vakkalagadda found his footing and tore through the last three rounds of the tournament with six first place ranks. He “picket fenced” his eighth and ninth rounds but was not able to do so in round ten. In the last round his cumulative score was eight ranks and that prevented him from winning the title.

Meghana Kunapareddy of Tompkins High School (TX) was unranked going into the Round Robin but will be after earning a fourth place finish. Kunapareddy tied Vakkalagadda’s cumulative score of 60 ranks at the end of the tournament but lost out on a standard deviation and reciprocal tiebreaker.

National Points Race leader Robert Zhang of Elkins High School (TX) took fifth, nestled in his own spot with 67 ranks between Kunapareddy and #4 Brandon Cheng of Flintridge Preparatory School (CA). Zhang finished three ranks ahead of Cheng.

What made this year’s Round Robin unique compared with past edition is that the top six was made up of extempers who did not place in the top six at the previous year’s tournament.

At the award’s ceremony, Dr. Steve Moss and Sandip Gupta, who have judged and assisted in prior Round Robins were recognized as honorary participants of the tournament. This is the first time that honor was bestowed.

April Zhang will earn 150 points for winning the season’s first major tournament. All of the extempers who placed in the top six, which were recognized at MBA’s award ceremony, will receive National Points Race points. Due to the fact that the old Round Robin rules advanced the top five to an Exhibition Round, the top five will receive credit for “finaling,” which could become useful in tiebreakers near the end of the season.

Here are the results of the 2024 Montgomery Bell Academy Extemp Round Robin:

2023 University of Texas-Austin Longhorn Classic: Lee is Sole Finalist in Both Extemp Categories and Wins IX; Haider Defeats Zhang by Judges’ Preference for USX Championship

On December 14, 2023

This year was the silver anniversary of the University of Texas-Austin’s Longhorn Classic. Held on December 1-3, the tournament drew a wide field of extempers from Texas, Louisana, Utah, California, and Florida.

In International Extemp, Katherine Lee retained the title for Plano West Senior High School (TX), beating #6 Brandon Cheng of Flintridge Preparatory School (CA) by three ranks. Lee’s is the fourth Plano West extemper to win the Longhorn Classic’s International Extemp title since 2019. She was also the only extemper at the tournament to final in both extemp categories, taking fifth in United States Extemp.

Cheng was appearing in his third National Points Race final round of the season. He last appeared in a National Points Race final at the New York City Invitational in October.

Plano East Senior High School (TX) had two finalists in the International Extemp category. Kate Liu took third and Ishika Kothari took fourth.

Two ranks behind Kothari was Daniel Rupawalla of Tompkins High School (TX). The sixth place finisher was Pranav Kalakuntla of Plano West.

Waleed Haider of Hendrickson High School (TX) won the United States Extemp category. Haider tied #4 Robert Zhang of Elkins High School (TX) with a composite of seven at the end of the final round and was awarded the title via judges’ preference 2-1. It was Zhang’s third final round appearance at a National Points Race tournament that he has attended.

Haider’s win broke a three-year winning streak by Plano West Senior High School in the category.

#8 Tyler Crivella of Seven Lakes High School (TX) finished third, two ranks behind Haider and Zhang. Crivella had a path to win with two judges awarding him second place ranks but a fifth place rank from the third final round judge doomed his title hopes. It is the second time that Crivella finished behind Zhang in a National Points Race contest as the two also clashed at the Glenbrooks.

Glenbrooks winner #2 Lishore Kumar of Tomball Memorial High School (TX) placed fourth. Kumar has made three National Points Race final rounds this season.

Sophia Wei of Plano West Senior High School (TX) reached her first National Points Race final round of the season, taking sixth.

#11 Ronak Patel of American Heritage School – Broward (FL) was in the field as well. He was a semi-finalist in United States Extemp and a quarter-finalist in International Extemp

All of the elimination round participants will earn National Points Race points because the Longhorn Classic was a third tier event for the first time. Lee and Haider will be awarded 100 points for their victories. To avoid double counting, an extemper’s highest finish will be credited for points, so Lee will not receive points for her finish in United States Extemp.

Here are the results of the 2023 University of Texas-Austin Longhorn Classic (Click here for tab sheet):

2023 George Mason University Patriot Games: Ural Denies Burris a Second Title; The Potomac School Has Two Finalists

On December 12, 2023