National Comprehensive Tournament
Sponsored by Pi Kappa Delta
March 18 – 21, 2010
Bloomington, Minnesota
The Gustavus Adolphus College Forensics Team has won its first national championship by winning the Overall Individual Events Team Sweepstakes at the Pi Kappa Delta National Comprehensive Tournament. Held at the Holiday Inn and Suites Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport Hotel, the Pi Kappa Delta National Comprehensive Tournament brought together fifty-seven colleges and universities from across the country.
Eighteen Gustavus students participated in the tournament and, together, the team advanced an impressive thirty-five events to Quarterfinals, twenty-five events to Semifinals and twelve events to Finals, finishing with three individual national champions: Senior Christopher Hunt won Program Oral Interpretation, Sophomore Chloe Radcliffe won Prose Interpretation, and First-year Kate Bissen won Informative Speaking.
Gustavus also placed two students in the Pentathlon Competition, which recognizes the top 10 students who compete in at least five events, with at least one event from each of the three genres of competition—limited preparation, public speaking, and oral interpretation. Sophomores Chloe Radcliffe and Luke Youngvorst took first and sixth place in Pentathlon, respectively.
The Team will compete next at American Forensic Association National Individual Events Tournament (AFA-NIET) at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, April 2 – 5.
Overall Individual Events Team Sweepstakes
First Place: Gustavus Adolphus College (306 points)
Second Place: Ohio University (305 points)
Third Place: Bowling Green State University (226 points)
Fourth Place: Carson-Newman (194 points)
Fifth Place: Miami University of Ohio (175 points)
Pentathlon
Champion: Chloe Radcliffe
Sixth Place: Luke Youngvorst
After Dinner Speaking
Semifinalist: Emma Moreau
Quarterfinalists: Kaitlin Burlingame
Eric Cronin
Communication Analysis
Second Place: Chloe Radcliffe
Fourth Place: Kate Bissen
Fifth Place: Phil Helt
Semifinalist: Mary Cunningham
Drama
Semifinalists: Sam Hemmerich
Emma Moreau
Chloe Radcliffe
Quarterfinalist: Kaitlin Burlingame
Duo
Quarterfinalist: Sam Hemmerich & CJ Hunt
Extemporaneous Speaking
Semifinalists: Mary Cunningham
Phil Helt
Luke Youngvorst
Impromptu Speaking
Second Place: Luke Youngvorst
Third Place: Mary Cunningham
Semifinalists: Chloe Radcliffe
Quarterfinalists: Allegra Birdseye
Kate Bissen
Eric Cronin
Chris Moua
Excellence: Eric Halvorson
Emma Moreau
Informative Speaking
Champion: Kate Bissen
Third Place: Mary Cunningham
Sixth Place: Sam Hemmerich
Semifinalist: Phil Helt
Quarterfinalists: Eric Halvorson
Chris Moua
Luke Youngvorst
Persuasion
Second Place: Mary Cunningham
Semifinalists: Phil Helt
Chris Moua
Excellence: Aly Roach
Poetry
Quarterfinalist: Katie Asfeld
Excellence: Vanessa Condon
Program Oral Interpretation
Champion: CJ Hunt
Semifinalist: Chloe Radcliffe
Quarterfinalists: Vanessa Condon
Sam Hemmerich
Prose
Champion: Chloe Radcliffe
Third Place: Emma Moreau
Excellence: Phil Helt
Sam Hemmerich
CJ Hunt