Arcadia High School’s (AHS) Speech and Debate Team is going to the 2022 National Speech and Debate Tournament! After participating in the East Los Angeles District National Qualifier on Mar. 11 and 12, five members made it through Qualifiers into the elimination rounds. AHS freshmen Evelyn Tsoi and Michelle Fan qualified to the national tournament in US Extemporaneous Speaking and Informative Speech, respectively. Juniors Anvitha Marlapati, Sarah Chao, and Kaylee Wong also broke into elimination rounds. This year, the National Speech and Debate Tournament will be in person in Louisville, Kentucky from June 12 to 17. 

To prepare for this competition, and the day of, our Apaches had weeks of practice and training and fought their way through the tough competition. Here’s a rundown of what happened and how the participants felt during the tournament.

From running speeches to taking advice from teammates and coaches, practices for Qualifiers vary depending on the participant’s event. 

Specifically, freshman Evelyn Tsoi who participated in National Extemporaneous Speaking mentioned how she “read through the news every day, took notes, and regularly practices speeches in class and at home.” 

Despite the different categories, our Apaches spent their efforts in building a strong foundation of knowledge in their respective fields. In Tsoi’s case, her category required speaking upon current political events, so she spent time updating herself on current world affairs and doing deep research on political issues. 

Additionally, one of the biggest challenges the team faced was their nerves. Going into competition with a good amount of preparation is the best piece of advice the team gave. 

“Listening to music helps tune out the surrounding distractions and allows me to focus on the rounds ahead. Talking with teammates or making friends with competitors from other schools is also a way to get rid of nerves by sharing the same mix of excitement and anxiousness,” said junior Sarah Chao. 

On the day of the competition, the AHS Speech and Debate Team competed on Friday and Saturday. The competition is held in multiple rounds, with breaks in between that are often used to destress or have some last-minute review. Tsoi recalls constantly refreshing Tabroom, the website that posts results for speech and debate, in hopes that she would break into elimination rounds. Each round lasts around an hour each, and competitors were given a set speaking order where judges grade and rank each seven to ten minute-long speech. These speeches were based on the given criteria for each event. Usually, there are five to seven competitors in each room, and there are a total of three preliminary rounds, semifinals, and finals. After all the results are tabulated, awards are given out for the top seven speakers in each event after the final round.

Tsoi recalled that her “favorite thing about the competition was the opportunity to form bonds and friendships. After a year of competing online, I lost the fun aspect of speech and debate, which was forming connections. I was able to talk to speakers that I’ve admired for a while and share the excitement of qualifying to nationals.” 

The focus now, for the Apaches who are going to Nationals, ranges from simply breaking into elimination rounds to placing in the top positions. It’s already absolutely incredible what these speakers have accomplished, and they plan to use this experience to learn how to improve their speaking and further their knowledge. The AHS Speech and Debate Team has the opportunity to watch the best in the nation, and hopefully achieve their ambitious, but tangible, dreams. Overall, after days of public speaking, nerve-wracking anticipation, and awards, our Apaches made their way home with new highlights, memories, and goals for the future. 

Photo courtesy of AHS Speech and Debate