As the Speech and Debate season comes to an end, the students prepare for the rigorous state competition.

Last weekend the Speech and Debate team returned from Silvina, one of the most competitive tournaments of the season. The team as a whole did well, with multiple students getting to the semifinals. Bella Fiore (12) received first place in Original Oratory, and many other students also placed.

This success did not come without effort. Team members describe one of the hardest parts of the Speech and Debate season is how time consuming the season can be.

“Debate can be very time consuming with how much you have to prep, we have practice once a week after school and then twice a week during lunch along with practice at home,”  debater Sara Pierce (12) said.

Speech competitors also face difficulties throughout their seasons.

“The hardest part of speech is waking up at ten on a Saturday, and then going to competition for ten hours; it’s very tiring,” Lydia Beyer (11) said.

Still the hardships Speech and Debate members persevere through also lead to improvement.

“I have seen an improvement in my performance this past year,” Pierce said.

The senior members contributed to the team’s success as well, out performing last year’s seniors.

“We had a great group of seniors last year, but this year’s seniors are stronger and the group is better,” Speech and Debate coach Matt Deters said.

The rest of the season holds two additional tournaments and four postseason competitions, including the state finals. Last year the team sent three students to nationals, and this year they are on track to send more students. This year’s national competition will take place in Florida from June 17 to 22.

“Some students should qualify for Florida, this will be our 59th time sending students to nationals,” Deters said. “This year has been wildly successful. We’ve had a great season.”