The Missouri Western Speech and Debate program brought home some titles from the Missouri Association of Forensics Activity State Championships at Webster University on February 19-20. The parliamentary debate team of Chris Miles and Casey Huffman won 10 straight matches to claim the state championship, Missouri Western won the debate sweepstakes in its division, and Jason Edgar, director of Missouri Western’s speech and debate program, was named Coach of the Year.
In parliamentary debate, Miles, a junior from Independence, Missouri, and Huffman, a freshman from Savannah, Missouri, posted an undefeated 4-0 preliminary record, earning them the No. 2 seed in elimination rounds.
After defeating Southwest Baptist on a 3-0 decision in the semifinals, Miles and Huffman advanced to the finals against a team from UCM who was also undefeated. The final panel of three judges voted 3-0 to crown Missouri Western as the 2016 State Champions in Parliamentary Debate.
“Chris and Casey shone at the State tournament,” Edgar said. “Winning Missouri Western’s first ever state championship in Parli is great, and it’s even better that we did it with a 10-0 undefeated record.”
Other Missouri Western students competing in the event were Madison Lantz of Holt and Ashley Howery of St. Joseph. By the end of the tournament, Missouri Western’s team was named State Champion in the President’s Division Debate Sweepstakes, a division for smaller entry schools. Edgar was also named “Coach of the Year” in Missouri for being one of two coaches to earn a first round bid to the National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence.
Missouri Western Speech and Debate is an academic activity in the Department of Communication and Journalism at Missouri Western State University. The team is now off until Spring Break when they compete at the National Parliamentary Tournament of Excellence held at California State University Long Beach. For more information, please contact Jason Edgar at jedgar@missouriwestern.edu.
Missouri Western State University is a comprehensive regional university providing a blend of traditional liberal arts and professional degree programs. The university offers student-centered, high quality instruction that focuses on experience-based learning, community service, and state-of-the-art technology. Missouri Western is located in St. Joseph, Mo., and is committed to the educational, economic, cultural and social development of the region it serves. Visit www.missouriwestern.edu.