Last weekend, Louisville, Kentucky hosted the National Speech and Debate Association (NDSA) National Tournament. This was the first time that Kentucky hosted NSDA since 1957. It was also the first in-person NSDA national tournament in three years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
International Extemp ended up as a race between the two extempers who were near the top of the National Points Race all season. #3 McKinley Paltzik of Phoenix Country Day School (AZ) won her second major championship, defeating #1 Daniel Kind of Lake Highland Preparatory School (FL) by twenty ranks. #22 Majid Shabbeer of Bellarmine College Preparatory (CA) finished third.
Kind, who won this year’s National Catholic Forensic League (NCFL) national championship, was trying to become the first extemper to win the NCFL and NSDA titles in the same year since 2011. He led going into the final round by ten ranks, but Paltzik captured an impressive nine first place ranks from the thirteen available judges in the final round. That allowed her to vault ahead of this year’s National Points Race winner, claim the title, and become the first Arizona extemper to win International Extemp.
Paltzik’s victory also completed a perfect conversion rate when she reached the final rounds of National Points Race tournaments this year, winning five titles in five final round appearances.
In United States Extemp, #12 Peter Alisky of Smoky Hill High School (CO) mounted a furious charge in the final round, going from fifth to first after taking eight first place ranks. Alisky defeated Kush Narang of Bellarmine College Preparatory, who entered the final round with a seven-rank advantage over last year’s NCFL national champion Ananth Veluvali of Edina High School (MN). Veluvali ended the tournament in third place to cap off a season where he finished in the top three of each of the four major tournaments.
Alisky is the first Colorado extemper to win a national championship at NSDA since 2006, when Colin West and Spencer Rockwell claimed titles in USX and IX.
For the National Points Race, Alisky will earn 250 points for his victory, as well as an additional 50 points for winning the final round because USX earned the bonus for having the most competitors within the top twenty-five in its field. Paltzik will earn 200 points for her victory, as well as an additional 40 points for winning the final round. All extempers that reached elimination rounds will earn National Points Race points, with final standings scheduled to be released by the end of the week.
The final rounds, as well as semi-final rounds, featured a lot of non-senior competitors, all of whom earn an automatic qualification to next year’s national tournament. This includes Ajay Gupta of Hinsdale Central High School (IL), #20 Jack Ververis of Trinity Preparatory School (FL), and #14 Gabriel Bo of Plano West Senior High School (TX) in International Extemp, and #13 Kyle Letterer of Plano West Senior High School (TX) and #9 Dev Ahuja of Solon High School (OH) in United States Extemp. All extempers who were not seniors and who achieved an automatic qualification to next year’s nationals are indicated in the results listing in blue.
In terms of Tournament of Champions (TOC) qualifications for next year, all quarter-finalists in their respective categories earn a bid leg to the Extemp TOC at Northwestern University, while all finalists and semi-finalists earn an automatic qualification to next year’s University of Kentucky TOC.
Here are the results of the 2022 National Speech and Debate Association National Tournament (Click here for tab sheet):