Concordia University, Nebraska’s Speech Team recently won the team championship in the small school (Division III) category at the Nebraska Intercollegiate Forensics Association (NIFA) State Championship on Feb. 11, 2017, in Hastings, Nebraska.
Included in the tournament were all college and university speech programs in Nebraska, including four of the top 20 teams in the nation. This award is the first NIFA Team Championship awarded to Concordia in 12 years, and the first NIFA award for non-debate events in the team’s history.
“This is a very exciting moment for our squad, and it is a testament to the passion our team has in the activity, and our determination to be competitively successful,” said Andrew Moffitt, Concordia’s director of forensics. “I've heard from several schools whose students attended the tournament, and they are excited for not only the current success we have enjoyed, but our future potential as a team.”
In order to win the NIFA Team Championship, the team’s preliminary and final round scores were assigned a point value, and rated against other schools. Director Moffitt also knows that this award is only the beginning for his competitors. “Because our current team is largely made up of first and second year competitors, I am very proud of their dedication to improve, their overall growth as a team unit, and their drive to look to future competitive and personal goals,” Moffitt said. He has coached the team for the past two seasons.
Concordia’s Speech Team will stay busy over the next two months as it prepares for the National Christian College Forensics Championship, to be held in Glendale, Arizona on March 18-20. Additionally, the team is preparing to attend the National Forensics Association National Championship, held in Eau Claire, Wisconsin on April 12-18.
Concordia students who participated in the NIFA State Championship:
- Tationa Trice, sophomore, St. Louis, Mo.
- Hannah Sugita, sophomore, Grand Island, Neb.
- Musa Fofana, senior, Seward, Neb.
- Melody Niemoth, sophomore, Louisville, Neb.
- Katie Funk, freshman, Clearwater, Neb.
- Will Helmer, freshman, Seward, Neb.
- Payton DeMers-Sahling, freshman, York, Neb.
- Faith Osborn, freshman, Oakes, N.D.
