Belmont University’s speech and debate team finished 2nd overall to current national champion Western Kentucky University at a speech and debate tournament in Owensboro, Kentucky, last weekend. Twenty Belmont students competed in Parliamentary Debate and Individual Speech events.
Ellery Gould and Travis Holloway were tournament champions in debate, and Casey Fincher and Nicole Licking were quarter-finalists. Gould was named top speaker overall. Other speaker awards include Holloway (10th place), Fincher (9th place), Jonathan Guenther (2nd place), Kelly Yeatts (5th place). Alma Vigil and Cortni Coleman also received novice speakers awards.
In Individual Events, Crystal Jones and Chasity Gunn were tournament champions in Duo Interpretation. Jones also placed 3rd in Poetry, 6th in Prose, and 4th in duo with Ryan Greenawalt. Gunn nabbed 6th in persuasion and 5th in prose. McKinley Belcher and Laura Cole placed 3rd in Duo, and Belcher placed 5th in persuasion. Cole, Greenawalt, and Cindy Minnicus also received top novice awards in their events.
Representatives of the team will travel to King College in November for a mock Constitutional Convention.
