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On Saturday, Apple Valley High School played host to the third Minnesota-based Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) qualifying tournament in as many weeks and sixty extempers competed for the tournament title. Dylan Adelman of Lakeville South High School (MN), a former teammate of three-time national champion Dylan Slinger and seventh place finisher at last year’s NFL National Tournament in International Extemp, handed Lily Nellans of Des Moines Roosevelt High School (IA) her third straight defeat on Minnesota turf and claimed his first TOC qualifier tournament title of the season. Adelman defeated Nellans by one rank, which marks the third consecutive week that Nellans has lost to a Minnesota extemper by that margin. Each of her defeats was to a different Minnesota competitor and in each tournament she competed in over this three week span she defeated the tournament champion from the previous week. In this tournament, she defeated Adam Stromme of Eagan High School (MN), who placed third. Stromme beat Nellans last week at the Schwan’s Speech Spectacular.
The tournament featured a novice division as well and Colin Haave of Eastview High School (MN) took first place over Olivia Shoemaker of Lakeville North High School (MN). The novice division was not eligible for TOC qualification.
Despite the large size of the tournament, it only broke to a final round. Erin Sheehan of Millard North High School (NE) was the only competitor to finish their at-large TOC qualification at the tournament and three other extempers in the final round earned their first TOC qualifying leg. All of the extempers that earned a TOC qualifying leg are indicated in italics below.
Stanford University in Palo Alto, California is the only host of a TOC qualifying tournament this weekend. It begins a series of West Coast qualifying tournaments over the remaining three weeks of the TOC qualifying calendar.
Here are the results of the 2014 Apple Valley Minneapple Speech Tournament (Click here for tab sheet):
Last weekend Pennsbury High School in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania hosted its eleventh annual Pennsbury Falcon Invitational. The tournament has been an Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) qualifier for the last several seasons and the tournament is the second to last qualifier stationed on the East Coast for the 2013-2014 season. Emmalie Langan of EL Meyers High School (PA) bested thirty-nine other extempers to win the tournament championship and became the seventh female extemper to win a TOC qualifying tournament this season. Langan defeated Collin Quigley of Holy Ghost Preparatory (PA), who qualified to this year’s TOC last week by semi-finaling at the Columbia Invitational, by three ranks in the final round. Delbarton High School (NJ) had two finalists – Thomas Abel and Abhinav Karale – who placed third and fourth, respectively.
Fifty-two extempers arrived on the campus of Columbia University in New York City last weekend for the annual Columbia Invitational. George Mason University Patriot Games Champion Jasper Primack of Newton South High School (MA) netted his second TOC qualifying tournament victory of the season in dominating fashion, winning by thirteen ranks with a cumulative score of fifteen. Graham Piro of Iona Preparatory School (NY) took second. Last year’s Columbia champion, Gabe Ferrante, went on to win the National Catholic Forensic League (NCFL) Grand National Tournament, so one wonders if the tournament will have a correct prognostication for the second straight year.
The state of Minnesota played host to its second 2014 Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) qualifier in as many weeks as Marshall High School and Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall, Minnesota played host to the annual Schwan’s Speech Spectacular. The tournament typically attracts a strong Midwest field and this year forty-two extempers competed in the varsity division. Adam Stromme of Eagan High School (MN) claimed his second TOC qualifying tournament title of the season by one rank in the final round over Lily Nellans of Des Moines Roosevelt High School (IA). Stromme, an NFL finalist last year in United States Extemp and winner of the Dowling Catholic Paradigm in December, and Nellans ended the tournament with the same cumulative total of seventeen ranks, but Stromme bested Nellans in the final to break the tie. This is the second consecutive runner-up finish at a Minnesota TOC qualifier for Nellans, who narrowly lost last week to Haley Brahmbhatt of Chanhassen High School (MN) at the Chanhassen Speech Tournament. Brahmbhatt made the final of the Schwan’s as well and placed fifth. Montgomery Bell Academy participant Jack Glaser of George Washington High School (CO) was also in the final round and took sixth.
James Logan High School in Union City, California, one of the most successful forensic programs in the country, usually spends Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend hosting its annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Invitational and this year was no exception. The tournament usually attracts a large field of the best programs in California and neighboring states and this year’s tournament did not disappoint as 107 extempers entered the United States Extemp portion of the tournament and sixty-nine extempers entered International Extemp. The tournament was cumulative and an extempers ranks followed them from prelims to finals, with the extemper having the lowest rank total winning the tournament.
While the polar vortex brought cold temperatures to much of the country, sixty-eight extempers competed in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, Florida for this year’s Sunvitational. Miles Saffran of Trinity Preparatory School (FL), coming off the heels of a third place finish at the Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin two weeks ago, cruised to a dominating ten rank victory in the cumulative tournament that functioned as a small preview of the Extemp Tournament of Champions (TOC), since seventeen of the twenty-four elimination round participants had already qualified to this year’s TOC. The victory is Saffran’s fourth at a TOC qualifying tournament this season. Noah Wexler of Nova High School (FL), who won the Crestian Tradition in October, took second and Richard Diubra of Millard West High School (NE) took third. Trinity Preparatory School had six elimination round participants, which was more than any other program at the tournament.
Thirty-five extempers competed at Dowling Catholic High School in Dowling, Iowa for the Dowling Catholic Paradigm last weekend. The tournament was an Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) qualifier and is traditionally the largest tournament in the state of Iowa. Adam Stromme of Eagan High School (MN), who finished fourth at last year’s NFL National Tournament in United States Extemp, won the tournament by four ranks over teammate Talha Ahsan. Stromme took two of the three first places ranks available in the final round. Richard Diurba of Millard West High School (NE) was the third place finisher.
It was a busy week for TOC qualifying tournaments and the University of Texas Longhorn Classic provided a southern qualifying tournament for those seeking qualifications to the 2014 Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC). While George Mason University’s Patriot Games Tournament receives the most attention on the first weekend of December, the Longhorn Classic has typically been considered one of the premier tournaments to earn consideration for a bid to the Mongtomery Bell Extemp Round Robin in Nashville, Tennessee. The tournament allowed extempers to compete in United States and International Extemp and Arel Rende of Booker T. Washington High School (OK) took both championships. Rende is the defending NFL national champion in United States Extemp and his two championships at the University of Texas give him three wins at major Texas tournaments this year, as he took the U.S. Extemp title at the St. Mark’s Heart of Texas Invitational in October. Cosmo Albrecht of Robert E. Lee High School (TX) took second to Rende in both halves of the tournament.
Princeton Univesity hosted its 17th annual Princeton Classic last weekend in Princeton, New Jersey and thirty extempers braved the weather to compete for the tournament title. Cristine Oh of Montville Township High School (NJ) took the championship by two ranks over Devon Kerr of Scarsdale High School (NY). Connor Fitzgibbon of Unionville Area High School (PA) took third. Montville Township had more extemp finalists than any other school, placing two competitors in the final round.
Last week’s other Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) qualifying tournament was the 2013 Villiger Tournament held on St. Joseph’s University’s campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The tournament is a staple of the Northeast extemp circuit and has an impressive list of past champions. This year’s tournament had 73 entries in extemporaneous speaking and Josh Wartel of Lake Braddock Secondary School (VA), a finalist at last year’s NFL National Tournament in United States Extemp, thwarted Chase Harrison’s title defense. Wartel defeated Harrison, who competes for Millburn High School (NJ), in the final by four ranks. Third place went to Jasper Primack of Newton South High School (MA). Wartel is the first extemper from Virginia to win the Villiger Tournament since Brennan Morris of Randolph Macon Academy, who won the tournament in 2008.
Last weekend in Gainesville, Florida, more than seventy extempers participated in the thirtieth annual Florida Blue Key Speech and Debate Tournament. This year’s tournament attracted one of the strongest fields in recent memory, as seventy-four extempers competed in United States Extemp and seventy-five in International Extemp. Miles Saffran of Trinity Preparatory School (FL) , winner of this year’s Wake Forest and Yale tournaments, exchanged victories with Lily Nellans of Des Moines Roosevelt High School (IA), with Saffran winning International Extemp and Nellans winning United States Extemp. Nellans defeated Saffran by two ranks in the United States Extemp competition and took three one’s in the International Extemp final, but Saffran’s consistency across all five judges helped him achieve his third victory of the year in a Extemporaneous Speaking Tournament of Champions (TOC) qualifying tournament. Josh Wartel of Lake Braddock Secondary School (VA) and Isabella Paretti of Cypress Bay High School (FL) exchanged third and fourth places in United States and International Extemp as well, with Wartel taking third in International Extemp and Paretti taking third in United States Extemp. The top four in each category were participants at last year’s Montgomery Bell Extemp Round Robin.