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Ladue Talking Rams

The Talking Rams are the speech and debate team representing Ladue Horton Watkins High School. Learn more at talkingrams.weebly.com

Who are the Talking Rams

Speech and debate team takes 2nd place in overall sweepstakes in first invitational of the year 

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The speech and debate team competed in their first invitational of the year in October 2018 at Parkway West High School. The Talking Rams took 2nd place in overall sweepstakes.

United States Extemporaneous Speaking
Grace Hu - 4th 
Hale Masaki - 5th

International Extemporaneous Speaking
Max Kornfeld - 1st
Fayzan Ali - 5th

Novice Extemporaneous Speaking
Chris Chen - 3rd

Novice Original Oratory
Marissa Mathieson - 2nd
Samuel Chen - 4th
Michael Cao - 5th
​Dramatic Interpretation
Ethan Willick - 5th

​
Informative Speaking
Max Kornfeld - 2nd
Gabe DiAntonio - 3rd
Sam Hiken - 5th
Athena Vinch - 6th

​Duo Interpretation
Grace Hu and Anna Reis - 6th

Program Oral Interpretation
Jackson Bry - 5th
​Congressional Debate
Connor Ross - 6th

Novice Congressional Debate
Aidan Oiknine - 1st
Daniel Xu - 2nd
Leif Schuster - 3rd
Ryan Tung - 6th

Public Forum Debate
Donovon Moore and Connor Ross - 2nd
​Novice Public Forum Debate
Michael Cao and Samuel Chen - 1st
Nevin Song and Ryan Tung - 2nd
Chris Chen and Avi Kamath - 3rd

Policy Debate
Eli Goldstein and Kevin Tan - 1st
Gabe DiAntonio and Grace Hu - 2nd
Sam Hiken and Hale Masaki - 3rd
Ari Gottesman and William Xie - Quarterfinalists 

Talking Rams take 1st place in sweepstakes at Oakville Autumn Congress

The speech and debate team competed in their first tournament of the year in September, 2018. The team took 1st place in sweepstakes at Oakville Autumn Congress.
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​Permanent Presiding Officers
Donovon Moore 
William Xie
Melody Zhang

1st Place
Ayush Ajmani
Gabe DiAntonio
Hale Masaki


2nd Place
Phani Chintakunta
Sam Hiken
Max Kornfeld

Ladue Speech & Debate qualifies six students for Nationals

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The speech and debate team competed in the Eastern Missouri District Speech and Debate Tournament during the weekend of March 1-3, 2018.  The team took 7th in Speech Sweepstakes, 1st in Congress Sweepstakes, 1st in Debate Sweepstakes, and 2nd in Overall Sweepstakes. Six students qualified for the national tournament in Fort Lauderdale this summer.

NATIONAL TOURNAMENT QUALIFIERS 
  • Levi Dyson and Edward Wu in Public Forum Debate
  • Max Kornfeld and Olivia Liu in Policy Debate
  • Albert Liu in Lincoln-Douglas Debate
  • Noor Rahman in Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Levi Dyson was a finalist for the 2018 Eastern Missouri District Student of the Year Award.

Ladue Horton Watkins High School Principal Brad Griffith was selected as the 2018 Eastern Missouri District Principal of the Year.

Ladue faculty Deb Lund, Monica Bowman, Janet Duckham, Sarah Kirksey, and Chris Geisz attended the tournament to judge.
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Emily Bell (class of 2012) was selected as the recipient of the 2018 Eastern Missouri District Alumni Achievement Award! ​

Full tournament results are below. Some students actually qualified to the national tournament in multiple events; however, students can only compete in one event at the national tournament. 

Lincoln-Douglas Debate
- Albert Liu - 1st place and District Champion, national qualifier
- Noor Rahman - 2nd place, national qualifier 

Policy Debate
- Max Kornfeld and Olivia Liu - 3rd place, national qualifiers 

Public Forum Debate
- Levi Dyson and Edward Wu - 2nd place, national qualifiers

Congressional Debate - Senate
- Edward Wu - 2nd place, national qualifier

Congressional Debate - House #1
- Levi Dyson - 1st place and District Champion, national qualifier 

Congressional Debate - House #2
- Albert Liu - 1st place and District Champion, national qualifier 
International Extemporaneous Speaking
- Max Kornfeld - 3rd place, national qualifier 

Original Oratory
- Sunny Lu - 5th place

Duo Interpretation 
- Daniel Chayet and Ethan Willick - 5th place ​



Ladue Speech & Debate makes a big impression Marquette Tournament

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Congressional Debate
Noor Rahman - 5th place
Edward Wu - 7th place and Permanent Presiding Officer

Championship Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Noor Rahman - Quarterfinalist 


The speech and debate team competed in our last invitational tournament of the regular season this past weekend. The team took 3rd place out of 37 schools.

Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking
Hale Masaki - 1st place

International Extemporaneous Speaking
Olivia Liu - 3rd place

Informative Speaking
Cindy Wang - 5th place

Duo Interpretation
Jackson Bry and Eli Goldstein - 1st place

Program Oral Interpretation
Jackson Bry - Semifinalist
Sunny Lu - Semifinalist


Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Diora Ton - Quarterfinalist 

Championship Policy Debate
Sam Hiken and Hale Masaki - Semifinalists

Championship Public Forum Debate
Donovon Moore and Connor Ross - Quarterfinalists ​​​
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​Public Forum Debate
Athena Vinch and Melody Zhang - 1st place and UNDEFEATED. ** This is only the 2nd time Athena and Melody have competed at the varsity level! Ari Gottesman and William Xie - Quarterfinalists 
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Every year the Marquette Speech and Debate Team gives out the I Speak for Others Award to a student who uses his or her voice to advocate for a better world. This year, Ladue's Levi Dyson was awarded the I Speak for Others Award for his work to create understanding across religions in the Saint Louis area. 


Senior Edward Wu on earns his Degree of Premier Distinction

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Congratulations to Senior Edward Wu on earning his Degree of Premier Distinction. Throughout his four years on the Talking Rams team, Edward has earned over 1,500 points and this places him in the top 1% of speech and debate competitors in the country. The Degree of Premier Distinction is the highest degree level a student can attain in the National Forensic League, the honor society of the National Speech and Debate Association. The Degree of Premier Distinction is a reflection of Edward's work ethic, dedication to the team, and competitive excellence. Edward is currently the team president and, for the second year in a row, is the co-coordinator for Public Forum Debate and Congressional Debate. On the weekend of January 12-13, 2018, Edward and his partner placed 1st in a Public Forum Debate tournament and was named Conference Champion in Congressional Debate. 

Speech and Debate team place 5th in sweepstakes at the Jefferson High School Capital Classic

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The speech and debate team competed in the Capital Classic hosted by Jefferson City High School the weekend of January 26-27, 2018. The team took 5th place in sweepstakes -- over 30 schools competed in this tournament, including 3 teams that regularly win school awards at the national tournament.

Informative Speaking
Cindy Wang (10), Semifinalist 

Original Oratory
Catherine Liao (09), Semifinalist 

Dramatic Interpretation
Audrey Wang (12), 6th place

Congressional Debate
Edward Wu (12), 1st place 
Levi Dyson (12), 3rd place
Ayush Ajmani (10), Semifinalist 
Sahana Raju (12), Semifinalist 

Open Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Ope Falako (12), Quarterfinalist 

Championship Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Albert Liu (12), Quarterfinalist 

Championship Policy Debate
Phani Chintakunta (10) and Max Kornfeld (12) - 1st place

Championship Public Forum Debate
Levi Dyson (12) and Edward Wu (12) - 1st place

Speech and Debate team rack up wins in the GSL Speech Association's Conference Tournament #3

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The speech and debate team competed in the Greater Saint Louis (GSL) Speech Association's Conference Tournament #3 January 12-13, 2018. The tournament was the final tournament of the conference series and conference awards were handed out in addition to tournament awards. 

TEAM AWARDS
- Overall Conference Champions (for the fourth year in a row and the sixth time in seven years!!)
- Debate Sweepstakes, 1st place
- Congressional Debate Sweepstakes, 1st place
- Interpretation Sweepstakes, 3rd place 


INDIVIDUAL CONFERENCE AWARDS
  • Olivia Liu - Conference Champion in Prose Reading & 3rd in Original Oratory
  • Sunny Lu - 3rd in Poetry Reading
  • Ande Siegel - 2nd in Interpretation
  • Fayzan Ali - 2nd in International Extemporaneous Speaking
  • Max Kornfeld - 3rd in International Extemporaneous Speaking
  • Edward Wu - Conference Champion in Congressional Debate
  • Albert Liu - Conference Champion in Lincoln-Douglas Debate
  • Audrey Wang - (tied) 3rd in Lincoln-Douglas Debate
  • Phani Chintakunta and Max Kornfeld - 2nd in Policy Debate
  • Gabe DiAntonio and Olivia Liu - 3rd in Policy Debate
  • Levi Dyson and Edward Wu - 2nd in Public Forum Debate



TOURNAMENT #3 AWARDS
PROSE READING
  • Olivia Liu, 1st
  •  Noor Rahman, 6th
POETRY READING
  • Sunny Lu, 1st
  • Ope Falako, 4th
INTERPRETATION
  • Ande Siegel, 1st
RADIO SPEAKING
  • Anna Zhong, 4th
  • Jackson Bry, 6th
ORIGINAL ORATORY
  • Olivia Liu, 3rd
  • Sunny Lu, 4th
  • Cassie Beisheim, 5th


DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
  • Gabe DiAntonio, 4th
INTERNATIONAL EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
  • Max Kornfeld, 3rd
  • Fayzan Ali, 4th
CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
  • Sahana Raju, 1st
  • Levi Dyson, 2nd
  • Edward Wu, 5th
LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
  • Audrey Wang, 1st
  • Albert Liu, 2nd
POLICY DEBATE
  • Phani Chintakunta and Max Kornfeld - 2nd
  • Gabe DiAntonio and Olivia Liu - Semifinalists
PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
  • Levi Dyson and Edward Wu - 1st

Speech and Debate finished first overall at Francis Howell/Troy tournament

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The speech and debate team competed in the Francis Howell North Events Round Robin and Troy Debate Round Robin this weekend. The team placed 3rd in events, 1st in debate, and 1st overall.

Tournament highlights:
  • Swept 1st-3rd in Novice Extemporaneous Speaking
  • Swept 1st place in all three types of varsity debate
  • Placed 1st in five of the six types of debate
  • 4 debate entries were undefeated in the tournament​
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​EVENTS 

Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking
Fayzan Ali (10) - 6th place

Origina Oratory
Cassie Beisheim (10) - 3rd place
Sunny Lu (10) - 4th place

Radio Speaking
Levi Dyson (12) - 3rd place 

Program Oral Interpretation
Jackson Bry (10) - 5th place
Sunny Lu (10) - 3rd place

Informative Speaking
Cindy Wang (10) - 1st place

Novice Extemporaneous Speaking
Gabe DiAntonio (09) - 1st place
Grace Hu (09) - 2nd place
Anna Reis (09) - 3rd place

Novice Original Oratory
Lauren Xie (09) - 4th place 
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​DEBATE 

Novice Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Anna Reis (09) - 1st place and undefeated 

Novice Policy Debate 
Gabe DiAntonio (09) and Grace Hu (09) - 2nd place and undefeated

Novice Public Forum Debate
Jake Gerardi (12) and Aidan Morley (12) - 1st place

Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Albert Liu (12) - 1st place and undefeated 

Policy Debate
Sam Hiken (11) and Hale Masaki (11) - 1st place

Public Forum Debate
Levi Dyson (12) and Edward Wu (12) - 1st place and undefeated
Jackson Bry (10) and Sahana Raju (12) - 4th place 

Talking Rams compete in their first conference tournament of the season

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Radio Speaking
Anna Zhong (10) - finalist 

Poetry Reading
Hale Masaki (11) - 5th place

Prose Reading
Olivia Liu (11) - 2nd place
Kevin Tan (10) - 3rd place

Congressional Debate
Edward Wu (12) - 1st place
Levi Dyson (12) - 2nd place
Albert Liu (12) - 5th place and Permanent Presiding Officer
​The speech and debate team competed in their first conference tournament of the season. The team  also hosted the tournament The Talking Rams send their appreciation to the Ladue faculty and staff for continuing to share their space with the debate team. Ladue took on this tournament after the original host canceled a few weeks before the tournament so they are very thankful to be part of such a supportive community!
Student achievements
Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking

Hale Masaki (11) - 1st place
** Hale was ranked 1st by every judge!

International Extemporaneous Speaking
Sam Hiken (11) - 3rd place
Gavin Giuliani (10) - 4th place
Fayzan Ali (10) - 5th place

Original Oratory
Olivia Liu (11) - 2nd place

Storytelling
Eli Goldstein (10) - 7th place
​
Lincoln-Douglas Debate
Connie Chen (10) - Semifinalist 

Policy Debate
Olivia Liu (11) and Hale Masaki (11) - Semifinalists 
Eli Goldstein (10) and Kevin Tan (10) - Semifinalists

Public Forum Debate
Levi Dyson (12) and Edward Wu (12) - Semifinalists ​

Speech and Debate team takes first place in Sweepstakes

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The speech and debate team competed in the Oakville Autumn Congress tournament this past weekend. The team took 1st place in Sweepstakes! 

Students listed placed in their chambers:

Albert Liu (12) - Permanent Presiding Officer
Levi Dyson (12) - 1st place
Brendan Yang (10) - 1st place
Sahana Raju (12) - 2nd place
Edward Wu (12) - 2nd place

Great success for Speech and Debate team in first tournament of the season

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The speech and debate team competed in the first tournament of the season on Saturday, September 30th.

Here are the results from the competition:
VARSITY DUET IMROVISATION
- Cassie Beisheim & Sunny Lu - 1st place, tournament champions
**Cassie & Sunny were ranked 1st in every round of the tournament! 
- Ope Falako & Claire Golden - 5th place

VARSITY IMPROMPTU SPEAKING
- Fayzan Ali - 5th place
- Anna Zhong - 6th place
VARSITY EXTEMPORANEOUS DEBATE
- Sam Hiken - 3rd place

NOVICE IMPROMPTU SPEAKING
- Gabe DiAntonio - 1st place, tournament champion
- Huamin Gao - 3rd place

NOVICE EXTEMPORANEOUS DEBATE
- Jake Gerardi - 1st place, tournament champion
**Jake was undefeated in the tournament!
- Derek Raymond - 5th place

Ladue Speech and Debate team compete in the MSHSAA State Tournament at Missouri State


Talking Rams win big at the Eastern Missouri District Tournament


​The speech and debate team competed in the Eastern Missouri District Tournament this past weekend! The team took 2nd place in Speech Sweepstakes, 1st place in Congressional Debate Sweepstakes, 1st place in Debate Sweepstakes, and 1st place in Overall Sweepstakes!

Aramis Rickey was named the District Student of the Year! Aramis was nominated for his leadership, dedication to the team, his belief in ethical debate, and for holding our entire team to a higher standard. Aramis will now go on to represent Eastern Missouri in the National Student of the Year competition. 

Ladue qualified 11 students to the National Speech and Debate Association's National Tournament! We'll be traveling to Birmingham in June for a week of speech and debate competition! 


Individual accomplishments are listed below.
Congressional Debate - Senate 
Edward Wu - 3rd place, National Qualifier 

Congressional Debate - House 2
Levi Dyson - 2nd place, National Qualifier 

Congressional Debate - House 3
Albert Liu - 1st place & District Champion, National Qualifier 

Informative Speaking
Fatima Sheriff - 5th place

Duo Interpretation
Connie Dong and Michelle Liu - 6th place
Humorous Interpretation
Ande Siegel - 1st place & District Champion, National Qualifier 

Original Oratory
Olivia Liu - 4th place, National Qualifier 

Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking
Patrick Naughton - 3rd place, National Qualifier
Hale Masaki - 4th place, National Qualifier 

International Extemporaneous Speaking
Noah DiAntonio - 1st place & District Champion, National Qualifier
Aramis Rickey - 3rd place, National Qualifier 
Maya Mutic - 4th place
Max Kornfeld - 6th place, National Qualifier
Policy Debate
Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic - 2nd place, National Qualifier 
Patrick Naughton and Aramis Rickey - 3rd place, National Qualifier 
Olivia Liu and Hale Masaki - 4th place
Max Kornfeld and Noor Rahman - 5th place  ​ 
​

1st place in debate sweepstakes and 1st place overall in Oakville and Eastern Missouri competitions

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The speech and debate novices competed in the Oakville Novice Events Round Robin and Eastern Missouri Novice Debate Round Robin. They took 1st place in debate sweepstakes and 1st place overall.
EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Nevan Giuliani - 2nd place

ORIGINAL ORATORY
Cindy Wang - 2nd place

RADIO SPEAKING
Katie Shaw - 3rd place
Fayzan Ali - 4th place

INTERPRETATION
Kathryn Xu - 4th place

PROSE INTERPRETATION
Kathryn Xu - 4th place

POETRY INTERPRETATION
Jackson Brry - 2nd place


CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
Shaun Carr - 1st place
Ayush Ajmani - 2nd place
Brendan Yang - 3rd place
Chris Naing - 4th place
Fatima Sheriff - 5th place

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
Fayzan Ali - 3rd place

POLICY DEBATE
Gavin Giuliani and Eli Goldstein - 1st place
Phani Chintakunta and Daniel Jung - 4th place
Simi Singh and Sanjana Tatikonda - 5th place

PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
Fatima Sheriff and Kathryn Xu - 1st place
Jackson Bry and Sahana Raju - 2nd place
Nevan Giuliani and Chris Ye - 3rd place
Philip Adams and Raj Paul - 4th place
Ayush Ajmani and Shaun Carr - 5th place

Talking Rams travel to Bradley University for competition

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Nine members of the speech and debate team traveled to Bradley University to compete in the George Armstrong Heart of Illinois Speech Invitational. This tournament was their toughest of the semester and is only offered to varsity members. This year was the team's best performance at the tournament in the past six years. This is the first time any students from Ladue have placed in individual sweepstakes!

HUMOROUS INTERPRETATION
Ande Siegel (10th) - 6th place

RADIO SPEAKING
Ande Siegel (10th) - Semifinalist 

IMPROMPTU SPEAKING
Patrick Naughton (12th) - Semifinalist 

DUO INTERPRETATION
Noah DiAntonio (12th) and Patrick Naughton (12th) - 4th place
Olivia Liu (10th) and Hale Masaki (10th) - 6th place

EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Noah DiAntonio (12th) - 4th place
Pranay Peddinti (12th) - 6th place
Max Kornfeld (10th) - Semifinalist 
Patrick Naughton (12th) - Semifinalist 

INDIVIUDAL SWEEPSTAKES
Noah DiAntonio (12th) - 3rd place
Patrick Naughton (12th) - 4th place​


Talking Rams compete in Greater Saint Louis Speech Association's Conference Tournament #2

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The speech and debate team competed in the Greater Saint Louis Speech Association's Conference Tournament #2 this past weekend! A special thank you to teacher Monica Bowman for coming out to judge!

DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Patrick Naughton, 3rd
Pranay Peddinti, 5th
Hale Masaki, 6th

FOREIGN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Maya Mutic, 1st
Aramis Rickey, 2nd
Max Kornfeld, 4th

ORIGINAL ORATORY
Olivia Liu, 1st
Audrey Wang, 6th
RADIO SPEAKING
Audrey Wang, 2nd

DRAMATIC INTERPRETATION
Ande Siegel, 2nd

DUO INTERPRETATION
Olivia Liu and Hale Masaki, 3rd
Jackson Bry and Eli Goldstein, 4th
Connie Dong and Michelle Liu, 5th
Noah DiAntonio and Patrick Naughton, 6th

POETRY READING
Jackson Bry, 4th
CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
Albert Liu, 5th
Levi Dyson, 6th
Edward Wu, Permanent Presiding Officer

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
Ope Falako, 2nd

POLICY DEBATE
Patrick Naughton and Aramis Rickey, 1st
* The only undefeated team in the tournament
Olivia Liu and Hale Masaki, 2nd
Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic, 3rd

Talking Rams place 1st place in debate sweepstakes and 2nd place in overall sweepstakes

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The speech and debate team competed in the Francis Howell North Events Round Robin and the Francis Howell Central Debate Round Robin this past weekend. The team took 1st place in debate sweepstakes and 2nd place in overall sweepstakes! 
VARSITY FOREIGN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Akshay Govindan, 6th place

VARSITY ORIGINAL ORATORY
Olivia Liu, 2nd place

OPEN DUO INTERPRETATION
Olivia Liu and Hale Masaki, 6th place

OPEN RADIO SPEAKING
Sahana Raju, 2nd place

NOVICE ORIGINAL ORATORY
Cassie Beisheim, 1st place
* Cassie was ranked first in every round! 
Kevin Tan, 2nd place
VARSITY LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
Albert Liu, 2nd place
* Albert was undefeated in the tournament!

VARSITY POLICY DEBATE
Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic, 1st place
* Noah and Maya were undefeated in the tournament!

NOVICE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
Aishwarya Kumar, 6th place

NOVICE POLICY DEBATE
Kevin Tan and Brendan Yang, 2nd place
Simi Singh and Sanjana Tatikonda, 3rd place
Gavin Giuliani and Eli Goldstein, 6th place

NOVICE PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
Jackson Bry and Sahana Raju, 2nd place

Speech and Debate competes in first conference tournament of the year

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The speech and debate team competed in their first conference tournament of the year the weekend of October 21-22 . 
DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Patrick Naughton, 1st place
- Hale Masaki, 4th place


INTERNATIONAL EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Maya Mutic, 1st place
- Noah DiAntonio, 2nd place

ORIGINAL ORATORY
- Olivia Liu, 1st place
- Ande Siegel, 5th place
CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
- Edward Wu, 1st place
- Journey Smith, 4th place
- Levi Dyson, Finalist
- Albert Liu, Finalist
​

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
- Albert Liu, 3rd place


POLICY DEBATE
- Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic, 1st place
- Olivia Liu and Hale Masaki, 3rd place
DUO INTERPRETATION
- Jackson Bry and Eli Goldstein, 3rd place
- Olivia Liu and Hale Masaki, 5th place
- Olivia DeHaven and Bernice Trapp, 7th place
STORYTELLING
- Ope Falako, 6th place

2nd place in overall sweepstakes in the Parkway Classic

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The speech and debate team competed in the Parkway Classic hosted by Parkway West High School in October. The team took 2nd place in overall sweepstakes. 
DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Hale Masaki - Semifinalist

FOREIGN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Noah DiAntonio - 2nd place
-Akshay Govindan - 5th place
- Faris Ali - Semifinalist

NOVICE EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Fayzan Ali - 6th place
- Aishwarya Kumar - Semifinalist
ORIGINAL ORATORY
- Audrey Wang - 2nd place
- Olivia Liu - 5th place
- Ande Siegel - Semifinalist

NOVICE ORIGINAL ORATORY
- Kevin Tan - 1st place
- Cassie Beisheim - 2nd place
- Sanjana Tatikonda - 5th place

RADIO SPEAKING
- Felix Hu - Semifinalist
NOVICE RADIO SPEAKING
- Lilly Tung - 3rd place
- Angela Liu - 6th place
DUO INTERPRETATION
- Olivia Liu and Hale Masaki - 1st place

NOVICE DUO INTERPRETATION
- Jackson Bry and Eli Goldstein - 1st place
- Michelle Liu and Malavika Kumaran - 2nd place
- Olivia DeHaven and Bernice Trapp - 5th place
NOVICE INTERPRETATION
- Joel Willick - 3rd place

NOVICE PROSE/POETRY READING
- Sunny Lu - 3rd place
- Kathryn Xu - 5th place
​
CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
- Albert Liu - Finalist
- Panth Shah - Finalist
- Journey Smith - Finalist
NOVICE CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
- Brendan Yang - 3rd place
​
LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
- Audrey Wang - 2nd place

NOVICE POLICY DEBATE
- Eli Goldstein and Gavin Giuliani - 3rd place

NOVICE PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
- Fatima Sheriff and Kathryn Xu - 4th place

Oakville Autumn Congress proves successful for Talking Rams

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​The speech and debate team competed in the Oakville Autumn Congress in October and placed 2nd overall.

Shaun Carr - 2nd place
Levi Dyson - Permanent Presiding Officer
Ope Falako - 2nd place
Albert Liu - Permanent Presiding Officer

Speech and debate team compete in first tournament of the year

The speech and debate team competed in our first tournament of the year, the Greater Saint Louis Speech Association's Pre-Season Invitational. 11 new team members competed in their first tournament and 12 team members won awards. 
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VARSITY EXTEMPORANEOUS DEBATE
Levi Dyson - 3rd place

VARSITY IMPROMPTU SPEAKING
Panth Shah - 1st place
Audrey Wang - 2nd place
Faris Ali - 3rd place


NOVICE DUET IMPROVISATIONAL ACTING
Cassie Beisheim and Sunny Lu - 1st place
Jackson Bry and Eli Goldstein - 3rd place

NOVICE EXTEMPORANEOUS DEBATE
Ayush Ajmani - 1st place
Connie Chen - 2nd place
Shaun Carr - 6th place

NOVICE IMPROMPTU SPEAKING
Fayzan Ali - 6th place ​​

Speech and debate team compete in MSHSAA Speech, Debate, and Theatre State Tournament

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Simi Falako - 2nd place in Original Oratory
   * Simi actually tied for 1st place and placed 2nd on a tie-breakeredit.
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Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic - quarterfinalists in Policy Debate
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​Jacob Granick and Bobby Zitzmann - 9th in Public Forum Debate


Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic - Policy Debate
Jacob Granick and Bobby Zitzmann - Public Forum Debate
Gabbie Burton and Noah DiAntonio - Duet Acting

Simi Falako - Original Oratory
Kieran Mulligan - Storytelling
Kyrollos Shenouda - Prose Reading

Ladue's Talking Rams qualify thirteen students to the national tournament

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​The speech and debate team competed in the Eastern Missouri District Tournament! The team took 2nd place in Speech Sweepstakes, 1st place in Congress Sweepstakes, 1st place in Debate Sweepstakes, and 1st place in Overall Sweepstakes! 

Simi Falako was named the Eastern Missouri District Student of the Year! She will not represent Ladue and Eastern Missouri in the National Student of the Year contest!

Jerome Gregory (class of 2013) was named the Eastern Missouri District Alumnus of the Year! He was recognized for his continued commitment to supporting the Eastern Missouri speech and debate community and his success in competing at the collegiate level. 
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Ladue qualified THIRTEEN students to the national tournament! Please join me in congratulating the students who will represent Ladue and Eastern Missouri at the National Speech and Debate Association National Tournament in Salt Lake City, Utah in June!
Gabbie Burton - Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking
Simi Falako - Original Oratory
Jacob Granick and Bobby Zitzmann - Public Forum Debate
Hanlu Jin - Congressional Debate, House
Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic - Policy Debate

Kieran Mulligan - Informative Speaking
Patrick Naughton and Aramis Rickey - Policy Debate
Rasika Sant - International Extemporaneous Speaking
Panth Shah - Program Oral Interpretation
Edward Wu - Congressional Debate, House

Talking Rams take 1st place in sweepstakes for the second tournament in a row

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The speech and debate team competed in their last regular season invitational this past weekend at Marquette High School. The team took 1st place in sweepstakes for the second tournament in a row! 

A special congratulations to Jackie Wong who was recognized with the 2016 I Speak for Others Award. The award is given annually to a speech and debate competitor in recognition of speaking and acting to make the world a better place. Jackie was recognized for her many hours of community service, her dedication to empowering women in STEM, and her commitment to making her community a better place. 

United States Extemporaneous Speaking
- Patrick Naughton, 2nd place
- Gabbie Burton, 4th place

International Extemporaneous Speaking
- Maya Mutic, 5th place
- Faris Ali, Semifinalist
- Huayu Gao, Semifinalist 
- Aramis Rickey, Semifinalist 

Original Oratory
- Simi Falako, 1st place
- Audrey Wang, 5th place

Informative Speaking
- Kieran Mulligan, 2nd place

Radio Speaking
- Henok Getahun, Semifinalist
- Felix Hu, Semifinalist

Humorous Interpretation
- Ope Falako, Semifinalist 

Duo Interpretation
- Hale Masaki and Kelly Phung, 2nd plce
- Gabbie Burton and Noah DiAntonio, 3rd place
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Storytelling
- Kieran Mulligan, 3rd place
- Aly Francone, 5th place

Prose Reading
- Kyrollos Shenouda, 3rd place

Congressional Debate

- Bobby Zitzmann, 2nd place and Permanent Presiding Officer
- Edward Wu, 3rd place
- Albert Liu, Finalist

Lincoln-Douglas Debate
- Audrey Wang, 1st place

Policy Debate
- Max Kornfeld and Noor Rahman, 2nd place
- Hale Masaki and Kelly Phung, 3rd place

Public Forum Debate
- Henok Getahun and Ashwin Govindan, 3rd place

Championship Public Forum Debate
- Levi Dyson and Edward Wu, 4th place


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Speech and debate team place 1st in team sweepstakes in a tournament of 28 schools

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United States Extemporaneous Speaking
- Noah DiAntonio, Semifinalist
- Simi Falako, Semifinalist 
- Patrick Naughton, Semifinalist

International Extemporaneous Speaking
- Rasika Sant, 1st place
- Faris Ali, Semifinalist

Original Oratory
- Simi Falako, Semifinalist
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Storytelling
- Aly Francone, Semifinalist
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Congressional Debate
- Bobby Zitzmann, 1st place
- Hanlu Jin, 2nd place and Permanent Presiding Officer
- Jacob Granick, 6th place
- Levi Dyson, Finalist
- Kieran Mulligan, Finalist
- Edward Wu, Finalist

Championship Lincoln-Douglas Debate
- Albert Liu, 4th place

Regular Lincoln-Douglas Debate
- Audrey Wang, 4th place

Championship Public Forum Debate
- Kieran Mulligan and Rasika Sant, 4th place
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Open Policy Debate
- Patrick Naughton and Aramis Rickey, 1st place
- Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic, 2nd place
- Olivia Liu and Noor Rahman, 3rd place
A special note of congratulations to the policy teams who swept 1st, 2nd, and 3rd and were the only undefeated teams in preliminary rounds. This is the second tournament in a row that the varsity policy teams have closed out and we are so proud of them!
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Ladue Speech & Debate Named Conference Champions again

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The Ladue Talking Rams were named conference champions the weekend of January 15-16, 2016. The team took 7th place in Interpretation Events, 1st in Congressional Debate, 1st in Public Speaking Events, and 1st in Debate. For the fourth time in five years, the team  also brought home the Conference Championship trophy. With the exception of  three seasons, Ladue has held the trophy since 1994. 

The speech and debate team competed in the third, and final, conference tournament of the year this past weekend at Ritenour High School. A special thank you went to Eric Hahn from the team, for coming out to judge the first round of debate 
on Friday.




DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Patrick Naughton - 1st place
- Gabbie Burton - 4th place
- Simi Falako - 6th place

FOREIGN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Rasika Sant - 2nd place
- Maya Mutic - 3rd place
- Aramis Rickey - 6th place
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ORIGINAL ORATORY
- Simi Falako - 3rd place
DUO INTERPRETATION
- Gabbie Burton and Noah DiAntonio - 3rd place

PROSE READING
- Kyrollos Shenouda - 5th place

ORIGINAL ORATORY
- Simi Falako - 2nd place

RADIO SPEAKING
- Jackie Wong - 5th place
HUMOROUS INTERPRETATION
- Ope Falako - 4th place

DUO INTERPRETATION
- Maya Mutic and Patrick Naughton - 2nd place
- Gabbie Burton and Noah DiAntonio - 3rd place
DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Patrick Naughton - 1st place & Conference Champion (t)
- Gabbie Burton - 3rd place
- Simi Falako - 5th place

FOREIGN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Rasika Sant - 2nd place
- Aramis Rickey - 4th place

CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
- Kieran Mulligan - 3rd place (t)
- Bobby Zitzmann - 3rd place (t)
- Albert Liu - 5th place (t)
- Hanlu Jin - 5th place (t)


CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
- Hanlu Jin - 2nd place and Permanent Presiding Officer
- Kieran Mulligan - 4th place
- Albert Liu - Super Session

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
- Simi Falako - Semifinalist 
- Audrey Wang - Semifinalist

POLICY DEBATE
- Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic - 1st place
- Patrick Naughton and Aramis Rickey - 2nd place
PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
- Kieran Mulligan and Rasika Sant - Semifinalists
LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
- Simi Falako - 1st place and Conference Champion
- Rasika Sant - 4th place (t)

POLICY DEBATE
- Patrick Naughton and Aramis Rickey - 2nd place
- Noah DiAntonio and Maya Mutic - 4th place

PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
- Jacob Granick and Kieran Mulligan - 3rd place (t)

Speech & Debate - Oakville and Parkway North

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Oakville Novice Events Round Robin
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​Parkway North Novice Debate Round Robin (with Tushar!)
ORIGINAL ORATORY
Ande Siegel - 4th place

RADIO SPEAKING
Aly Francone, 4th place
Charlie Yeldham, 5th place
Ande Siegel, 6th place

EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Akshay Govindan, 2nd place
Hale Masaki, 3rd place
Max Kornfeld, 4th place
Louisia Yang, 5th place
LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
Claire Golden, 3rd place

POLICY DEBATE
Max Kornfeld and Noor Rahman, 2nd place
Oliviua Liu and Louisia Yang, 3rd place
Hake Masaki and Kelly Phung, 4th place

PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
Akshay Govindan and Felix Hu, 5th place
Team alumnus, Tushar Raj (class of 2015), came to Parkway North to support the team - we're happy to share that he is loving Minnesota and had a wonderful first semester!

Talking Rams come up big at Bradley University

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.The traditional "Go Rams" picture taken at every tournament with Ladue Alum Jerome Gregory '13 jumping in to take part in a favorite team tradition!
Ten members of the speech and debate team traveled to Bradley University for their annual speech invitational this past weekend. This will be our most difficult tournament of the season - it is the largest tournament in which we will compete, all students entered four events, many tried multiple new events, and this is our only national tournament of the semester. 

Simi Falako, Maya Mutic, and Patrick Naughton were semi-finalists in Extemporaneous Speaking. 

Jacob Granick and Kieran Mulligan were finalists in Sports Broadcasting. Kieran placed 5th and Jacob earned 3rd place. 

Additionally, we saw Ladue alumni Jerome Gregory (2013), Hannah Snidman (2015), and Cal Weisman (2015) -- it was definitely a highlight of the trip to see Ladue alumni!

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DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Patrick Naughton - 2nd place
- Gabbie Burton - 5th place

FOREIGN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
- Aramis Rickey - 4th place

ORIGINAL ORATORY
- Simi Falako - 2nd place
- Noah DiAntonio - 4th place

RADIO SPEAKING
- Huayu Gao - 5th place
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DUO INTERPRETATION
- Gabbie Burton and Noah DiAntonio - 4th place


CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
- Kieran Mulligan - 2nd place
- Bobby Zitzmann - 4th place & Permanent Presiding Officer
- Albert Liu - 5th place
- Jacob Granick - Finalist
- Edward Wu - Finalist
- Levi Dyson - Finalist

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
- Simi Falako - 3rd place

POLICY DEBATE
- Patrick Naughton and Aramis Rickey - 2nd place
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PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
- Gabbie Burton and Kyrollos Shenouda - 3rd place

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​The speech and debate team had another great weekend of competition! We competed at the Francis Howell North Events Round Robin on Friday and the Brentwood Debate Round Robin on Saturday. We took 1st place in debate sweepstakes at Brentwood!
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Please congratulate the following students when you see them.

DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Gabbie Burton - 2nd place
Patrick Naughton - 3rd place

FOREIGN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Aramis Rickey - 5th place

ORIGINAL ORATORY
Simi Falako - 4th place

HUMOROUS INTERPRETATION
Renee Colby - 4th place

DUO INTERPRETATION
Gabbie Burton & Noah DiAntonio - 3rd place
Maya Mutic & Patrick Naughton - 5th place


PROSE READING
Kyrollos Shenouda - 6th place

NOVICE ORIGINAL ORATORY
Audrey Wang - 3rd place

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
Huayu Gao - 3rd place

NOVICE LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
Audrey Wang - 4th place

POLICY DEBATE
Maya Mutic & Patrick Naughton - 5th place

PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
Kieran Mulligan & Bobby Zitzmann - 1st place & only undefeated team 
Levi Dyson & Edward Wu - 3rd place
Jacob Granick & Rasika Sant - 5th place
Gabbie Burton & Kyrollos Shenouda - 6th place

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​​The Greater Saint Louis Speech Association (GSL) is the local speech and debate organization. The GSL provides educational and competitive opportunities for students as well as providing advocacy and support for speech and debate teams in the Saint Louis area. Each year Ladue competes in the GSL Conference Championship series. Students compete in three tournaments throughout the year and earn points toward the conference titles. Conference titles are awarded to individuals and teams. Last year Ladue had three individual conference champions and swept all five divisions of team championships. 
​DOMESTIC EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Simi Falako - 1st place
Gabbie Burton - 3rd place
Kyrollos Shenouda - 4th place

FOREIGN EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING
Rasika Sant - 1st place

ORIGINAL ORATORY
Simi Falako - 1st place

RADIO SPEAKING
Rasika Sant - 2nd place


PROSE READING
Kyrollos Shenouda - 2nd place 

CONGRESSIONAL DEBATE
- Bobby Zitmann - 2nd place
- Albert Liu - 6th place
- Edward Wu - Finalist

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE
Rasika Sant - 1st place
Simi Falako - 2nd place

PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE
Jacob Granick and Kieran Mulligan - 1st place
Kyrollos Shenouda and Bobby Zitzmann - 2nd place
Gabbie Burton and Oishi Paul - 3rd place
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Ladue Horton Watkins High School is located in 
St. Louis, Missouri