n their best tournament of the season, the Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK) Speech and Debate Team placed third in debate sweepstakes and fifth overall at the Speech at the Beach Tournament in Corpus Christi. The team’s most recent tournament was hosted by Del Mar College and San Jacinto College from Feb. 22 to 24.
At the tournament, colleges from Texas and other states gathered to compete in debate events as well as individual events.
At the event, members of the TAMUK Speech and Debate Team participated in Team Parliamentary Debate, IPDA Debate – an individual form of Parliamentary Debate – Prose, Impromptu Speaking and Extemporaneous Speaking.
Kylie McIntosh had the highest speaker points and win record for the team and made it to quarterfinals in IPDA Debate.
Josue Villareal’s speaker points pushed him into the quarterfinals in IPDA Debate as well.
Darrien Salinas made it to finals and placed sixth in Impromptu Speaking.
She also placed seventh in Prose. McIntosh placed seventh in Extemporaneous Speaking.
For the team’s captain, McIntosh, advancing to quarterfinals in debate events is “satisfying but also tense” because “in quarterfinals just one judge in one round decides whether you continue to advance. It’s a lot of pressure,” McIntosh said.
Salinas has been competing in Speech and Debate for only two semesters. Placing sixth in Impromptu Speaking was rewarding as well as an emotional experience for her.
“I honestly felt my heart stop and I was [so] overwhelmed that I started to cry and immediately called my dad to tell him. It was so rewarding to finally get recognized since all the other competitors [have] been doing this for years and this was only my second semester doing these events,” Salinas said.
While the team does face a lot of pressure in tournaments, the hard work they put in to prepare for their events paid off at Speech at the Beach.
“I’m so happy for my team, having a big third place trophy to display at the school because of us feels amazing. We’ve worked hard this semester and we’re a tight-knit and supportive group. It feels good to succeed, but even better to succeed together,” McIntosh said.
The team plans on taking their experience from Speech at the Beach to improve. They will continue to work hard to compete at the national level in Louisiana.
“Overall we did great as a team. We brought five students. Some big schools like the University of Texas at Austin bring 20. For us to make third in Debate and sixth in Impromptu is wonderful for our school and shows our readiness to compete at the national level,” Dr. Lana McDonnell, the TAMUK Speech and Debate coach, said.