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More than 200 extempers attended this year’s Harvard National High School Forensic Invitational, making it the largest national circuit tournament of the 2014-2015 season. However, weather conditions led to the tournament having a truncated schedule and deciding to break to quarter-finals after four rounds. This resulted in a break of just over ten percent of the field and some of the better national circuit competitors coming just shy of the break.
Despite the difficuties, elimination rounds did feature some strong competition, with six of the top fifteen extempers in the National Points Race participating. Justin Graham of Trinity Preparatory School (FL) won his second National Points Race tournament of the year, defeating Shawn Kant of Ridge High School (NJ) by seven ranks in the final round. Graham will earn 150 points for his victory, as Harvard is a second tier tournament, and this will move him back into first place in the National Points Race. He is also the first Florida extemper to win Harvard since at least 2002.
Eitan Sapiro-Gheiler of Durham Academy (NC) finished the tournament in third place, which gives him his sixth National Points final round placing of the season. That is more than any other extemper this season.
Patrick Wilson‘s attempt at giving Booker T. Washington High School (OK) its second Harvard winner in as many years came up short, as he ended the tournament in fourth place.
Two extempers – Abhinav Karale of the Delbarton School (NJ) and Rupasri Shankar of Plano Senior High School (TX) – finalized their 2015 Extemp TOC at-large bids at Harvard.
All of the finalists also earned an automatic qualification to the 2015 University of Kentucky TOC.
Here are the results of the 2015 Harvard National High School Forensic Invitational (Click here for tab sheet):