UNG debate and speech teams take top honors at state tournament

University of North Georgia (UNG) Debate and Speech Club team members placed first in five categories, won an overall individual performance, and earned two team awards Feb. 22 at the Georgia Intercollegiate Forensic Association State Championship.

Hosted by UNG, students competed in 14 individual speech and performance events as well as overall student and school sweepstakes awards. Teams from UNG's Dahlonega and Gainesville campuses participated.

Nathalia Ingles won first place for overall performance at the tournament. Elizabeth Bishop finished in second place.

Other UNG students who claimed state championships in the following categories were:

• Extemporaneous Speaking: Taylor Mullikin
• Impromptu Sales Speaking: Savannah Chastain
• Program of Oral Interpretation: Bishop
• Poetry Interpretation: Ingles
• Duo Interpretation: Ingles and Cristian Muniz

Based on the individual wins, several students qualified for the National Forensic Association tournament. They were Mullikin, Chastain, Bishop, Ingles, Jalessa Tambe, Hieu Nguyen, and Chris Beccue.

The UNG Debate and Speech Club chapter on the Gainesville Campus captured second in the sweepstakes team award while the Dahlonega Campus chapter placed fourth.

"We exceeded 200 points in the sweepstakes for the first time in time in 12 tries in this event," said Dr. Tom Preston, professor of communication at UNG and adviser for the UNG debate and speech teams on the Gainesville and Dahlonega campuses.

Following the state competition, the UNG team finished fifth overall at the Novice National Debate and Speech Tournament on March 7-8 at Berry College. Mullikin earned a quarterfinalist spot in the International Public Debate Association division and semifinalist in impromptu and impromptu sales speaking.

Mullikin's success continued at the National Online One on One debate championships March 28-29. She finished in second place in the varsity competition out of 40 competitors. This marked UNG's first competition online in English language debate.