Over the winter break, SF State’s Speech and Debate Team scored one of its most impressive victories ever. Students Genelle Murray and Aliyah Shaheed beat Ivy League juggernaut Harvard University, America’s top team in head-to-head competition, in the Cal Swing tournament held at University of California, Berkeley on January 7.
“This is one of the biggest wins in SF State history,” says Teddy Albiniak, forensics director. “Join me in congratulating all of the members who put their heart and soul into advocacy, performance, and communication inside and outside the classroom.”
The team was busy throughout the holiday season, winning first place overall at UC Berkeley’s “The Talk-off” tournament and performing exceptionally in two other tournaments.
Northridge Invitational
- Quarter Finalists in Varsity: Alex Carey and Kenton Raiford
- Second Place in Junior Varsity Division: Mia Guzman and Kenia Perez
- Seven Overall Speaker in Open: Maddy Grey
Berkeley Speech Tournament: “The Talk-off”
- First Place Overall: San Francisco State University
- First Place, Informative Speaking: Ajibola Hassan
- First Place, Overall Speaker: Ashley Johnson
- Second Place, Overall Speaker: Pablo Ramirez
- Second Place, Dramatic Interpretation: Cooper Wright
- Top Novice in Dramatic Interpretation: Nicole Morrison-Fountain
- Third Place, Poetry: Ericka Guevarra
- First Place, Novice Impromptu: Milo Munoz-Valverde
- Top Speaker and Semifinalist, Parliamentary Debate: Paul Villa
Hartnell Invitational
- First Place, Program of Oral Interpretation: Adreanna Tirone
- First Place, After-Dinner Speaking: Adreanna Tirone
- Second Place, Program of Oral Interpretation: Pablo Ramirez