October 14, 2009


Forensic team wins Third Place Sweepstakes and seven awards in five events

Recently, Del Mar College’s Vocal Vikings forensics team traveled to Tarrant County College Northeast (TCCN) in Fort Worth to compete in their first speech tournament this academic year. The team won Third Place Sweepstakes after contending with Lamar State University, Louisiana State University Alexandria, Southern Methodist University in Dallas and TCCN.

“Forensics is an extremely important activity for our students as they gain confidence and expose themselves to various topics, current events and literature,” says Sarah Contreras, DMC associate professor of speech and Vocal Viking coach.

Team members demonstrated their speech talents and competitiveness in events such as Persuasive, Informative, Impromptu and After Dinner Speaking as well as Poetry. Results from the competition include Lorissa Chapa winning first place in Poetry Interpretation, fourth place in Impromptu Speaking and fifth place in Persuasive Speaking; Lesley Elizondo winning second place in After Dinner Speaking; Monica Perez winning second place in Poetry Interpretation; Steven Robbins winning fifth place in Informative Speaking; and Judy Toscano winning fourth place in Persuasive Speaking. Team member Adriana Infante also competed in the Prose category.

Purposefully organized for novice speakers, the tournament at TCCN served to boost the Vocal Vikings’ esteem and prepare them for three more competitions this semester.

Contreras notes, “Although competition is healthy, students value most the educational experience they gain from being on a team and seeing competitors from other schools while visiting other campuses across the state and country.”

The team’s next trip takes them to Houston for the Bayou Bucket Swing Tournament followed by trips to Louisiana State University in Shreveport and New York University in Manhattan.