Southwest Baptist University News Release
Contact: Sharina Smith, Office of Marketing & Communications
BOLIVAR, Mo. – The Speaking Bearcats competed with 24 other schools at the Hutchinson Community College Tournament September 23-25. The team finished in sixth place in overall sweepstakes. Freshman Nik Fischer reached the semifinals of extemporaneous speaking, freshman Shawna Barkley reached the finals of persuasive speaking, and freshman Meg Burns reached the semifinals of prose interpretation. The freshman debate team of Fischer and Barkley posted a winning record in the varsity division of parliamentary debate.
The team’s strong finish was aided by valuable contributions from sophomore Matt Adams, junior Lauren Schriver, freshman Jenna King, and freshman Alicia Briggs.
Reflecting upon the weekend SBU’s Director of Forensics Dr. David Bailey noted that he was encouraged by the team’s finish: “Of the 24 schools present at the tournament, at least four or five of them were national-caliber teams mostly populated by juniors and seniors. Although we expect to see continually improving results throughout the season, we were encouraged that our young team of mostly freshmen were able to ‘hold their own’ against some very tough competition. We are expecting great things from this young team in the future.”
The Speaking Bearcats will travel to Bethel College in Newton, KS for the Sunflower Swing October 14-15.
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PHOTO:
Back row (closest to the rail) from left to right or bottom of the stairs to the top. Shawna Barkley, Lauren Schriver, Matt Adams, Nik Fischer. Second row from the bottom to the top Jenna King, Meg Burns, Alicia Briggs.
Southwest Baptist University is a leader among private universities in truly integrating Christ-centered academic pursuits with comprehensive professional programs at an affordable price. At SBU, the faculty and staff create a caring, academic community to prepare students to be servant leaders in a global society. For more information, visit www.SBUniv.edu.
SBU’s Office of Marketing and Communications is available to news media 24 hours a day at (417) 399-7918.
