Results
States: 3/9/24
The team competed at States in Louisville, Ohio. Brooke Carlson was crowned the State Champion in Congressional Debate. Placing second at States was Pearl Johnson in Declamation. Placing fourth was the team of Reagan Carnes and William Thompson in Public Forum Debate. Placing seventh in Extemporaneous Debate was Maria Shindika. Reaching finals in Congressional Debate was Zoey Murtha. Also competing at States were Silas Berkland, Lyla Bienias, Evie Bohac, Aspen Bozarth, Sophia Coburn and Ayla Lewandowski.
Kenston: 2/24/24
Team placed second out of fourteen middle schools at its home tournament. Maria Shindika was the tournament champion in Extemporaneous Debate, while Pearl Johnson was the tournament champion in Declamation. Placing second were Addison Weber in Extemporaneous Debate and Zoey Murtha in Congressional Debate. Reagan Carnes and William Thompson placed fourth in Public Forum Debate, while Lyla Bienias placed seventh in Oratory.
Mayfield: 2/10/24
Placing first were Pearl Johnson in Declamation and Reagan Carnes in Extemporaneous Debate. In Congressional Debate, Brooke Carlson placed second while Zoey Murtha placed fourth. In Interpretation, Evie Bohac placed third, Liam Serquina placed fourth and Ayla Lewandowski placed sixth.
Solon: 1/27/2024
In Extemporaneous Debate, William Thompson placed second while going undefeated, while Addison Weber placed seventh. In Congressional Debate, Zoey Murtha placed sixth in her chamber. Special thanks to Dr. Poe and Ms. Cabrera-Perrine for judging!
North Canton Hoover: 1/20/24
Team placed second as a team and took home first place in three of the six events. Brooke Carlson (Congressional Debate), Pearl Johnson (Declamation) and Addison Weber (Extemporaneous Debate) were all tournament champions! Additionally, Kenston’s six Extemporaneous Debaters swept the top four places, while having a combined 21 win and 3 loss record. In addition to Addison, Reagan Carnes, Maria Shindika and William Thompson all went undefeated in that event. Also placing at the tournament was Ben Yamsek, who took fifth place in Declamation.
Hathaway Brown & Laurel School: 1/13/24
Brooke Carlson was the tournament champion in Congressional Debate. In Extemporaneous Debate, Maria Shindika placed fifth, Reagan Carnes placed sixth and Addison Weber placed eighth. In Declamation, Ben Yamsek placed sixth, Mia Baldwin placed ninth, and Sophia Coburn placed 10th. William Thompson won half of his debates, and Ayla Lewandowski earned a third place ranking in one of her rounds.
Brecksville: 1/6/24
Congrats to Tournament Champions Pearl Johnson in Declamation, Reagan Carnes in Extemporaneous Debate and Brooke Carlson in Congressional Debate. In Interpretation, Evie Bohac placed third and Aspen Bozarth placed seventh. In Extemporaneous Debate, William Thompson went undefeated and placed third while Maria Shindika placed sixth, and Addison Weber won three of her four debates and placed ninth. Ben Yamsek placed ninth in Declamation as well. Big welcome to Ayla Lewandowski who competed in her first tournament.
Kenston: 12/16/23
Pearl Johnson was the tournament champion in Declamation. In Extemporaneous Debate, William Thompson placed second and Addison Weber placed third, with both going undefeated. In Interpretation, Georgia LeFeber placed second while Lillian Shumaker placed seventh. Vienne Rechtiene and Reagan Carnes placed seventh in Public Forum Debate. Silas Berkland won half of his debates. Big welcome to Liam Serquina for competing in his first tournament.
Vermilion: 12/9/23
Pearl Johnson was the Tournament Champion in Declamation, while Zoey Murtha was the Tournament Champion in Congressional Debate. Placing second was Juliana Shumaker in Interpretation. Placing fifth were William Thompson in Extemporaneous Debate and Georgia LeFeber in Interpretation. Big welcome to Lyla Bienas and Mia Baldwin for competing in their first tournament ever. Ten middle schools competed at Vermilion.
Olmsted Falls: 12/2/23
Congrats to Maria Shindika, who went undefeated and placed second in Extemporaneous Debate. Also placing second in their events were partners Vienne Rechtiene and Reagan Carnes in Public Forum Debate and Brooke Carlson in Congressional Debate. In Declamation, Pearl Johnson placed third and Sophia Coburn placed sixth. In Interpretation, Juliana Shumaker placed third, Lillian Shumaker placed seventh and Georgia LeFeber placed eighth. Placing fifth were William Thompson in Extemporaneous Debate and Zoey Murtha in Congressional Debate. Congrats to Addison Weber for winning half of her debates. Also, congrats to Esther Shindika and Silas Berkland for winning a debate in their first tournament ever.
Mentor: 11/18/23
Congratulations to Vienne Rechtiene and Reagan Carnes won first place in Public Forum Debate while going undefeated. In Congressional Debate, Brooke Carlson placed first, Ben Yamsek placed second and Zoey Murtha placed fourth. Juliana Shumaker placed second in Interpretation. In Extemporaneous Debate, William Thompson placed seventh, while Addison Weber defeated University Middle School in her first tournament ever.
Nationals: 6/14-16/23
Congrats to Brooke Carlson who placed third in the Nation in Congressional Debate, and teammates Reagan Carnes and Grace Voudris who tied for ninth in the Nation in Public Forum Debate. Additionally, Reagan received an award for being the fourth best Public Forum Debate speaker at the tournament. The three KMS team members traveled to Phoenix, Arizona with their parents in June to compete at the National Speech and Debate Middle School National Tournament. This is the first time that KMS’s Speech and Debate Team has competed in an in-person national tournament. KMS competed virtually at Nationals the last three years, but this was by far its best finish ever.
States: 3/11/23
KMS won State Championships in four of the six events at Hathaway Brown and University Middle School against 24 middle schools in the fifth ever Middle School State Championship: Kate Tobin in Interpretation, Pearl Johnson in Declamation, Brooke Carlson in Congressional Debate, and partners Reagan Carnes and Jillian Ragsdale in Public Forum Debate. This was the third time (and second year in a row) that KMS won the State Championship in Public Forum Debate and the first time winning a state championship in any other event. Also earning medals were Zoe LeFeber, who placed fifth in Oratory, and Ben Yamsek, who placed fifth in Congressional Debate. Maren Hill placed eighth in Oratory, Sebastien Peiffer placed tenth in Declamation, Will Turner reached finals in Congressional Debate, and Georgia LeFeber reached semifinals in Interpretation. Rounding out the team were Charlie McBride and Maria Shindika in Extemporaneous Debate and Evie Bohac and Norah Bozarth in Interpretation.
Kenston: 2/25/23
The team placed second out of fourteen schools. Tournament champions were Pearl Johnson in Declamation, Georgia LeFeber in Interpretation, Zoe LeFeber in Oratory, and Brooke Carlson in Congressional Debate, Going undefeated and placing second on a tiebreaker in Public Forum Debate were Reagan Carnes and Grace Voudris, ending the regular season on a twenty debate winning streak. Placing second in their events were Sebastien Peiffer in Declamation, Ben Yamsek in Congressional Debate, and Kate Tobin in Interpretation. Will Turner placed fourth in Congressional Debate. In Extemporaneous Debate, Jilly Ragsdale won three out of her four debates. Jack Zaranec competed in his first tournament of the season, with excellent scores in Interpretation. Special shout-out to Grace Voudris, who has completed her Ohio middle school debate career, winning 95% of her debates in Ohio over the past two years with a 57 win and 3 loss record.
Rhodes: 2/11/23
Kenston was recognized as Cleveland’s outstanding middle school program of the year! Consistent with the award, KMS had the tournament champion in five of the six events held at the tournament! Placing first were Zoe LeFeber in Oratory, Brooke Carlson in Congressional Debate, Georgia LeFeber in Interpretation, Pearl Johnson in Declamation, and partners Reagan Carnes and Grace Voudris in Public Forum Debate, now winning sixteen debates in a row. Additionally, Ben Yamsek placed fourth in Congressional Debate, and Elyssa Gatto placed sixth in Oratory. In Extemporaneous Debate, Charlie McBride placed seventh and Jilly Ragsdale placed eighth. Amelie DeBoth beat a debater from Revere, and Will Turner did a great job in Congressional Debate. Big welcome to Avery St. John and Emma Fernandez who participated in their first tournament.
Solon: 1/28/23
Kenston placed third in the middle school division. Reagan Carnes and Grace Voudris were tournament champions in Public Forum Debate for the third week in a row, winning twelve straight debates over that timespan. Ben Yamsek placed second in Congressional Debate. Going undefeated and placing third in Extemporaneous Debate was Graham Christopher. Jilly Ragsdale placed fourth in Extemporaneous Debate, while Sebastien Peiffer placed eighth in Declamation. William Thompson won debates against Revere and Solon, while partners Alden Peterson and Margaret Zallar defeated a team from Brecksville-Broadview Heights.
Hoover: 1/21/23
Kenston had the tournament champion in three of the six middle school speech and debate events held at Hoover: William Thompson in Extemporaneous Debate, Zoe LeFeber in Oratory, and Reagan Carnes and Grace Voudris in Public Forum Debate. Pearl Johnson placed fifth in Declamation, and Georgia LeFeber placed eighth in Interpretation. Maria Shindika and Jillian Ragsdale each won three out of their four debates. In Congressional Debate, Brooke Carlson placed second, Will Turner placed seventh, and Riley O’Hare placed eighth in their chambers. Big welcome to Graham Christopher for competing in his first tournament of the season and winning half of his debates!
Hathaway Brown: 1/14/23
Zoe LeFeber was the tournament champion in Oratory. In Congressional Debate, Brooke Carlson was the tournament champion with Ben Yamsek placing fourth. Reagan Carnes and Grace Voudris were the tournament champions in Public Forum Debate, with Vienne and Gavin Rechtiene taking fourth place. Kate Tobin placed second in Interpretation. In Declamation, Sebastien Peiffer placed fourth and Hunter Dalton placed fifth. Jilly Ragsdale placed sixth in Extemporaneous Debate. A big welcome to Ella Morin and Gabrielle Kluesner, who went to their first tournament ever. The team will be competing at North Canton Hoover this coming Saturday.
Brecksville: 1/7/23
Zoe LeFeber was the tournament champion in Oratory, and Georgia LeFeber was the tournament champion in Interpretation! In Congressional Debate, Brooke Carlson placed fourth and Ben Yamsek placed sixth. In Extemporaneous Debate, William Thompson and Emilynn Pemberton won two of their three debates. Rebecca Chelbezan, Lillian Chiles, Alison El-Hayek, Amelie DeBoth, Marshall Rankin and William Szarka all placed in Public Forum Debate. A big welcome to Callan McCoy and Norah Bozarth for participating in their first tournament!
Wadsworth: 1/6/23
Brooke Carlson was the tournament champion in Congressional Debate. Rebecca and Emma Chelbezan placed second and third in Extemporaneous Debate.
Kenston: 12/17/22
Kate Tobin was the tournament champion in Interpretation, and Zoe LeFeber was the tournament champion in Oratory. Georgia LeFeber placed third in Interpretation. In Public Forum Debate, the team of Gavin & Vienne Rechtiene placed second, Amelie DeBoth & Alison El-Hayek placed fourth, Alden Peterson & Margaret Zallar placed fifth, Will Szarka & Marshall Rankin placed sixth, and Rebecca Chelbezan & Lillian Chiles placed seventh. Ben Yamsek placed seventh in Congressional Debate. In Extemporaneous Debate, Reagan Carnes, Grace Voudris and Emma Chelbezan all won three out of their four debates, placing seventh through ninth. Evie Bohac and Riley O’Hare did a great job competing in their first tournament of the season.
Vermilion: 12/10/22
KMS had two tournament champions: Kherington Swader in Congressional Debate and Grace Voudris in Extemporaneous Debate. Sebastien Peiffer placed 5th In Declamation and Rebecca Chelbezan placed fifth in Extemporaneous Debate. In Public Forum Debate, Gavin and Vienne Rechtiene placed sixth and Marshall Rankin & William Szarka placed seventh. Congrats to Eric Wachtler, Amelie DeBoth and Alison El-Hayek for competing in their first debate tournament.
Olmsted Falls: 12/3/22
Kate Tobin was crowned the tournament champion in Interpretation. In Oratory, Zoe LeFeber placed second, and Marin Hill placed fifth. Kenston had four of the top ten debaters in Extemporaneous Debate, with Grace Voudris placing second and going undefeated for the second tournament in a row, while Emma Chelbezan placed fifth, Charlie McBride placed sixth, and William Thompson placed tenth, with each of them winning three of their four debates. Jilly Ragsdale and Will Turner placed third in Public Forum Debate, also winning three of their four debates. Ben Yamsek placed fourth in Congressional Debate. Doing a great job while competing in their first tournaments ever were Alden Peterson, Marshall Rankin, Gavin Rechtiene, William Szarka and Margaret Zallar, while Maria Shindika and Vienne Rechtiene successfully competed in their first tournament of the year.
Copley: 11/19/22
In Public Forum Debate, placing first was the team of Brooke Carlson and Reagan Carnes, placing second was William Turner and Jillian Ragsdale, and placing third (in their first tournament) was Rebecca Chelbezan and Lillian Chiles. In Extemporaneous Debate, Grace Voudris placed third and Charlie McBride placed fourth, both with a 4-0 record. Also competing in Extemporaneous Debate were William Thompson in seventh place and Emma Chelbezan in tenth place, while Zach Radefeld defeated a debater from University School. In the speech events, Zoe LeFeber placed second while Kate Tobin placed third. Doing a great job while competing in their first tournaments were Liam Heintz, Pearl Johnson, and Ben Yamsek in Congressional Debate and Emilynn Pemberton in Extemporaneous Debate.
Online Nationals: 6/7-9/22
Middle School Nationals was held virtually for the third year in a row because of COVID-19 concerns. Congratulations to Marin Carlson who placed 11th in the country in Declamation! Additionally, Public Forum Debate partners Grace Voudris and Audrey Earl defeated two teams from Virginia and a team from California while debating whether the United States should establish a comprehensive bilateral trade agreement with Taiwan. Congratulations also to Brooke Carlson and William Radefeld for submitting speech videos to the competition and receiving excellent rankings from the judges. 828 students from 171 schools, including teams from India, Taiwan, Canada, Uganda and China participated in the tournament.
States: 3/12/22
Congrats to partners Audrey Earl and Grace Voudris, who were crowned Middle School State Champions in Public Forum Debate, by defeating Solon in semifinals and University School in finals after going undefeated and achieving the top seed in prelims! This is the second time in four years that KMS has won the State Championship in Public Forum Debate. Additionally, placing third in the State were Marin Carlson in Declamation and Zoe LeFeber in Oratory. William Thompson placed sixth in the State in Extemporaneous Debate, and Katherine Tobin placed seventh in Interpretation. Coming in eighth place were Kherington Swader in Congressional Debate and William Radefeld in Oratory. In Congressional Debate, Nathaniel McIntosh was a finalist, while Riley O’Hare and Maria Shindika completed Kenston’s congressional delegation.
Winning half of their debates were Brooke Carlson, Reagan Carnes, Jillian Ragsdale, William Turner and Graham Christopher. Rounding out the team at States with amazing performances were Rachael Clark in Declamation, Austin Hoch in Extemporaneous Debate, and Madelyn Foerster and Demetria Marshall in Oratory. Great job by all!
North Coast: 2/12/22
In the largest middle school tournament of the season, Marin Carlson was the Tournament Champion in Declamation, Grace Voudris had a perfect four win and no loss record in Extemporaneous Debate while placing second, and Zoe LeFeber came in third place in Oratory. Kenston’s public forum debate teams of William Turner & Jillian Ragsdale and Brooke Carlson & Reagan Carnes each won half of their debates, while debating whether single use plastics should be banned. Rachael Clark and Madelyn Foerster were ranked the top speaker in one of their rounds. Special congratulations to Riley O’Hare, who gave five outstanding speeches in Congressional Debate.
Solon: 1/29/22
In Oratory, Zoe LeFeber placed third, while Vienne Rechtiene and Demi Marshall tied for eighth place. Mira Jarzembak placed seventh in Interpretation. Competing for the first time as Public Forum Debate partners, Alex Grunwald and Jilly Ragsdale beat a team from Solon in Public Forum Debate, while Audrey Earl beat a debater from Revere in Extemporaneous Debate.
Hoover: 1/22/22
Kenston placed first in four of the five middle school events. Congratulations to the following tournament champions: Kherington Swader in Congressional Debate, teammates Brooke Carlson and Reagan Carnes in Public Forum Debate, Grace Voudris in Extemporaneous Debate, and Marin Carlson in Oratory. Katherine Tobin placed second in Interpretation. Placing second in Public Forum Debate was the team of Jillian Ragsdale and William Turner. In Oratory, Zoe LeFeber placed second, William Radefeld placed third, Madelyn Foerster placed fifth, and Maren Hill placed sixth. In Extemporaneous Debate, Zachary Radefeld placed second, Graham Christopher placed fourth, William Thompson placed fifth, and Austin Hoch placed sixth. Placing fifth in Congressional Debate was Nathaniel McIntosh. Also competing at the tournament were Demi Marshall, Sebastien Peiffer, Maria Shindika, and Charlie Doersen.
Liberty: 1/15/22
The team had several tournament champions: Zoe LeFeber in Oratory, Marin Carlson in Declamation, and partners Audrey Earl and Grace Voudris in Public Forum Debate. In Congressional Debate, Kherington Swader placed second and Nathaniel McIntosh placed third. In Oratory, William Radefeld placed third, Maren Hill placed sixth, and Sebastien Peiffer and Madelyn Foerster tied for seventh. Kate Tobin placed fifth in Interpretation. In Public Forum Debate, teammates Brooke Carlson and Reagan Carnes placed second, William Turner and Jillian Ragsdale placed third, and Lucas Lombardo (in his first tournament) and Daniel Wilson placed fourth.
Chardon: 1/8/22
In Extemporaneous Debate, Audrey Earl placed third, while Brooke Carlson and Reagan Carnes placed sixth in Public Forum Debate. Marin Carlson placed fourth in Declamation. In Oratory, Madelyn Foerster placed fourth and Ella Aznavorian placed seventh. Also competing were Thomas Dooley, Jillian Ragsdale, Giuliana Hoover, Marin Hill and Rachael Clark. Congrats to all!
Kenston: 12/18/21
Marin Carlson placed third in Declamation, Madelyn Foerster placed fifth in Oratory, and Grace Voudris placed fifth in Extemporaneous Debate. Audrey Earl and William Thompson each won three of their four debates. Competing in their first tournaments were Graham Christopher, Thomas Dooley, Colin Haky, Austin Hoch and Christian Hoffman-Konst. Congrats to all 22 KMS students participating in the tournament!
Poland: 12/11/21
In Declamation, Marin Carlson placed first and Rachael Clark placed second, while Kherington Swader placed second in Congressional Debate. In Extemporaneous Debate, Audrey Earl placed first, Jillian Ragsdale placed second, Zach Radefeld placed third, Will Turner placed fourth, Jack Zaranec placed fifth and Charlie Doersen placed sixth. In Oratory, Ella Aznavorian placed fourth and Zoe LeFeber placed fifth. Teammates Brooke Carlson and Reagan Carnes placed second in Public Forum Debate. Katherine Tobin placed sixth in Interpretation. Those successfully competing in their first speech and debate tournament were Mira Jarzembak and Vienne Rechtiene.
Wadsworth: 12/4/21
In Congressional Debate, Kherington Swader placed first while Nate McIntosh placed third. In Public Forum Debate, both Kenston teams were undefeated with a six win and no loss record, with Brooke Carlson/Reagan Carnes placing first and Audrey Earl/Jillian Ragsdale placing second. In Oratory, Zoe LeFeber placed second, Ella Aznavorian placed third, Maren Hill placed fourth, Amelia Jenson placed fifth and Demi Marshall placed sixth. Kate Tobin placed fifth in Interpretation. Others competing in their first tournament were Giuliana Hoover, Riley O’Hare and Vivian Honaker.
Austintown Fitch: 11/20/21
In their first tournament of the season, Brooke Carlson placed first, Grace Voudris placed second, and William Turner placed third in Extemporaneous Debate. In Oratory, Ella Aznavorian placed second. In Declamation, Marin Carlson placed third. In Congressional Debate, Kherington Swader placed fourth. Also competing were Marin Hill, Demi Marshall, Sebastien Peiffer, Owen Pleune, Jillian Ragsdale, Maria Shindika and William Thompson.
Online Nationals: 6/8/21
Kenston Middle School participated in National Speech and Debate Association’s Speech Showcase, which was held virtually for the second year in a row because of COVID-19 concerns. Congratulations to Katherine Smith, Madelyn Foerster, Nathan Rolf, Charles McBride, Grace Voudris, Marin Carlson, Gabriella Bates and Reagan VanFossen for submitting videos to the competition and doing an incredible job.
States: 3/13/21
Kenston Middle School’s Speech and Debate Team competed virtually at the Ohio Middle School State Championship. Kenston had four of the top eleven Extemporaneous Debaters at States. Congrats to Grace Voudris, who went undefeated, placing third in the State of Ohio based on tiebreakers. Grace is on a winning streak of 16 debates in a row and has not lost a debate round since January 9. Nathan Rolf, Charles McBride and Jillian Ragsdale each won three of their four debate rounds, placing 8th, 9th and 11th in the State respectively. Great job to Public Forum Debate partners Nathaniel McIntosh & William Radefeld, Katherine Smith & Sara Studer, and Charlotte Syslo & Alexandra Grunwald, as well as Extemporaneous Debater Reagan VanFossen, who all won at least one of their debates at States, despite this being the first year competing for almost all of them. Representing Kenston proudly in Congressional Debate were Porter Fontana and Kherington Swader. KMS also did outstanding in the speech events. Marin Carlson placed Sixth in the State of Ohio in Declamation! Talk about a consistent season, Marin has placed in her last twelve speech tournaments! In Oratory, Madelyn Foerster, Gabriella Bates and Demetria Marshall wrote and presented outstanding speeches about sign language, feral cats, and cliques.
North Coast: 2/13/21
Congrats to Grace Voudris for winning her third Extemporaneous Debate tournament in a row with a 4-0 record, to Jillian Ragsdale for winning three out of her four debates, and to Marin Carlson for placing third in Declamation. Welcome to Reagan VanFossen for recently joining the team and competing in her first debate tournament. Also representing Kenston proudly in competition were Kherington Swader, Nathan Rolf, Daniel Wilson and Evan DeCourcey in debate and Gabriella Bates and Madelyn Foerster in speech.
Solon And Yellow Springs: 1/30/21
KMS’s Speech and Debate team competed at two tournaments last weekend, placing second as a team at the Yellow Springs tournament and sixth as a team at the Solon tournament. Jillian Ragsdale was the tournament champion in Extemporaneous Debate with an undefeated four win and no loss record. Also competing in Extemporaneous Debate were Nathan Rolf with a three win and one loss record, and Madelyn Foerster, where the team debated topics such as whether zoos should be banned and whether the death penalty should be eliminated. Marin Carlson placed third in Declamation, while Gaby Bates received great rankings in an Oratory about feral cats. In Public Forum Debate, Nate McIntosh and Will Radefeld beat a team from University School, while Kate Smith and Sara Studer beat a team from Brecksville, on the topic of whether the United States should prioritize the economy over the environment. Congrats to all!
Laurel And Sylvania: 1/23/21
For the second week in a row, Grace Voudris went undefeated and was the tournament champion in Extemporaneous Debate. Charlie McBride placed third in Extemporaneous Debate with a three win and one loss record, and Marin Carlson placed fourth in Declamation. Kherington Swader competed in Congressional Debate, while Gaby Bates competed in Oratory. Congratulations to all.
Berea: 1/16/21
In Extemporaneous Debate at the Berea tournament, Grace Voudris was the tournament champion with a four win and no loss record while also placing were Nathan Rolf in fifth place and Charlie McBride in sixth place.
Canfield And Brecksville: 1/9/21
Congratulations to Marin Carlson who placed third in Declamation and Gabriella Bates who placed fourth in Oratory at the Canfield tournament. In Extemporaneous Debate at the Brecksville tournament, congratulations to Nathan Rolf and Charlie McBride who both won three out of their four debates, with Nathan taking third place and Charlie taking seventh place.
Kenston: 12/19/20
Kenston hosted its annual tournament, at which 33 schools attending virtually. Going undefeated with a 4-0 record and placing third was Nathan Rolf in Extemporaneous Debate, debating topics as diverse as whether daylight savings time should be eliminated, whether beauty pageants for children should be banned, whether college athletes should be paid, and whether the wall between the United States and Mexico should continue to be built. He defeated debaters from Chagrin Falls, Revere, and University School. Also placing for KMS were Kherington Swader, 2nd Congressional Debate; Marin Carlson, 4th Declamation; Piper Noda, 4th Interpretation; and Kate Tobin, 7th Interpretation. Participating in her first tournament of the year was Evelyn Sanovich. Congratulations to the 17 KMS students who took part this week.
Vermilion: 12/12/20
Congratulations to Marin Carlson for being the tournament champion for the second week in a row while competing at the tournament hosted by Vermilion. Also placing were Piper Noda (2nd in Interpretation), Kate Tobin (3rd in Interpretation), Madelyn Foerster (4th in Oratory), Charlie McBride (6th in Oratory), and Gabriella Bates (7th in Oratory). Grace Voudris won extemporaneous debates against Hathaway Brown and University School.
Olmsted Falls: 12/5/20
Kenston once again had amazing results during Olmsted Falls’ Speech and Debate tournament. Marin Carlson placed first in Declamation, while Madelyn Foerster placed fourth and Gabriella Bates placed sixth in Oratory. In Interpretation, Kate Tobin placed second and Piper Noda placed third. In Extemporaneous Debate, Grace Voudris placed fifth with a 3-1 record, and Nathan Rolf and Jillian Ragsdale also won debates, on topics about rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement, China threats to world stability, teachers being allowed to have guns at school, and banning single use plastic bags. Congrats to all!
Mentor: 11/21/20
KMS had 17 members of its Speech and Debate Team compete at the Mentor tournament. Against 32 teams in Public Forum Debate, Aurora Young and Raegan Timmons placed fourth with a 3 win and 1 loss record, and William Radefeld and Nathaniel McIntosh placed ninth, also with a 3-1 record. Congrats to Evan DeCourcey and Daniel Wilson who, in their first ever tournament, won a debate against their coach’s alma mater – Centerville. Placing second this week were Kate Tobin in Interpretation and Marin Carlson in Declamation. In Oratory, Madelyn Foerster placed fifth, Gabriella Bates placed sixth, and Charles McBride placed seventh.
Maumee: 11/14/20
Congratulations to KMS’s Speech and Debate Team for excellent results at the Maumee (Toledo) tournament. In Congressional Debate against quite a bit of competition, James Weiner placed first and Kherington Swader placed fifth. Marin Carlson placed second in Declamation and Demi Marshall placed fifth in Oratory, both competing against high schoolers. We had the only Public Forum debate teams, with our 8th graders (Kate Smith and Sam Worsdall) defeating our 6th graders (Grace Voudris and Joey Triscaro) in both of their debates. In Extemporaneous Debate, Nathan Rolf won a debate. In a separate nationally based competition, Charlie McBride, Kate Tobin, Madelyn Foerster and Marin Carlson submitted impressive videos to be judged in that competition.
East Liverpool: 11/7/20
KMS’s Speech and Debate Team continues to excel. Congratulations to all! Marin Carlson placed first in Declamation with straight ones at East Liverpool. In Extemporaneous Debate, Nathan Rolf placed first with a four win and no loss record while Jillian Ragsdale placed third in her first tournament. In Public Forum Debate, Aurora Young and Joseph Triscaro placed second. Placing in Oratory were Madison Minich in fifth and Gabriella Bates in sixth. In Congressional Debate, Brooklyn Alexander placed sixth overall and third in her chamber, while Kherington Swader placed fourth in her chamber. Congrats to James Weiner for competing in Congress in his first ever tournament and to Demi Marshall for competing in Oratory.
Ursuline: 10/31/20
Congrats to Marin Carlson, Demi Marshall, Charlie McBride, Kherington Swader, Charlotte Syslo, and Grace Voudris for competing in Speech and Debate at Ursuline in Youngstown on Halloween. First tournament ever for Demi and Kherington, first tournament of the year for Marin, and second tournament of the year for Charlie, Charlotte and Grace. Grace took first place in Extemporaneous Debate with an undefeated 3-0 record, Charlie & Charlotte took second place in Public Forum Debate, Kherington took 5th place in Congressional Debate, and Demi took 5th place in Oratory.
John F. Kennedy: 10/24/20
Congrats to Porter Fontana, Charlie McBride, Charlotte Syslo, Joey Triscaro and Grace Voudris for competing virtually at the first speech & debate tournament of the season. Everyone did awesome, received great feedback from the judges, and accomplished much by getting their first tournament of the season under their belt. Our Public Forum teams each had three wins and one loss, with McBride/Syslo taking first place and Triscaro/Voudris taking second place. Fontana competed in Congressional Debate in his first ever speech & debate tournament.
On-line Nationals: 6/12/20
For the first time ever, Kenston Middle School participated in a national Speech and Debate tournament. This year’s tournament was held on-line because of COVID-19 concerns. Congratulations to Katherine Smith, Madelyn Foerster, Nathan Rolf, Charles McBride & Grace Voudris who competed in the Pro-Con Debate Challenge and to Peter Como who competed in Prepared Prompt Speaking and Prepared Mixed Extemporaneous Speaking. Katherine and Nathan also competed in Storytelling. They were among more than 1,000 middle school students competing from 164 schools and 34 states.
Kenston: 2/22/20
Congrats to Nathan Rolf, who was the tournament champion in Big Questions Debate for the second tournament in a row with a 4 win and no loss record. Also congrats to partners Brett King and Peter Como for placing seventh in Public Forum Debate with a 3-1 record.
Rhodes: 2/8/20
Congratulations to Nathan Rolf who came in first place with a perfect four win and no loss record in Big Questions Debate at the tournament held at Rhodes High School in Cleveland. Placing right behind Nathan were Katherine Smith in second place and Madelyn Foerster in fourth place. In Public Forum debate, partners Peter Como and Brett King placed fourth with a three win and one loss record. Marin Carlson rounded out the team with an outstanding performance in Interpretation.
Solon: 1/25/20
Kenston Middle School’s Speech and Debate Team competed at Solon on Jan. 25. Congratulations to Nathan Rolf for placing fourth and Madelyn Foerster for placing fifth in Big Questions Debate and to Peter Como and Brett King for placing fourth in Public Forum Debate. In Interpretation, Marin Carlson received first place in one of her rounds, and Chloe Hebert earned second place in one of her rounds.
John Carroll University And Hathway Brown School: 1/18/20
Congratulations to Nathan Rolf for placing third in Big Questions Debate at Hathaway Brown. In Public Forum Debate, Brett King and Peter Como placed sixth with a three win and one loss record. Placing eighth in Interpretation was Marin Carlson. Madelyn Foerster placed seventh in Big Questions Debate. Great job by all.
Brecksville: 1/4/20
Congratulations to Brett King for placing third and Jacob Gertsburg for placing fifth in Big Questions Debate at the Brecksville-Broadview Heights tournament. Marin Carlson had her best performance of the season in Interpretation.
Kenston: 12/21/19
Kenston hosted its annual speech and debate tournament on December 21. Congratulations to Peter Como and Brett King for placing first in Public Forum Debate for the second tournament in a row. In Big Questions Debate, Jacob Gertsburg placed second and Madelyn Foerster placed sixth in her first tournament ever. In Interpretation, Chloe Hebert placed fifth and Sophia Alandt placed seventh. Attending her first tournament of the season was Kate Smith. Congratulations to all!
Vermilion: 12/14/19
Congratulations to Public Forum Debaters Peter Como and Brett King for placing first at the Vermilion tournament. In Big Questions Debate, Jacob Gertsburg placed second and Nathan Rolf placed fourth. In Interpretation, Chloe Hebert placed seventh, Alexa Hebert placed tenth, and Sophia Alandt placed eleventh.
Olmsted Falls: 12/7/19
Congratulations to Peter Como and Brett King for placing second in Public Forum Debate at the Olmsted Falls speech and debate tournament. They debated whether in the United States, students should be guaranteed two years of free tuition to a community or technical college. Also congratulations to Marin Carlson who competed in her first ever speech and debate tournament. The team will be attending eight more tournaments this season. It is still not too late to join the team.
Mentor: 11/22/19
Congratulation to debaters Peter Como and Jacob Gertsburg who came in fourth and fifth place respectively at the first KMS Speech and Debate tournament of the year, which was held in Mentor on November 23. They debated whether or not objective morality exists. Sophia Alandt also had a great first tournament in the speech category of Interpretation.
State Tournament: 3/9/19
KMS excelled at the Middle School States tournament held at Poland Middle School in Youngstown. Seventh grade Public Forum debaters Peter Como and Brett King are KMS’s first ever State Champions in a Speech and Debate event! Congressional Debate competitors Devin Cinch and Ella Jewell qualified for finals in Congressional Debate. Just missing a medal were Big Questions debaters Jacob Gertsburg who placed seventh and Hunter Kestranek who placed eighth. Recording personal bests in Interpretation were Autumn Marshall and Lillian McCleery. Nathan Rolf competed in Big Questions debate for the first time this season.
Rhodes: 2/9/19
Congratulations to all 17 KMS students attending the last regular season tournament of the year, which was held at John Ford Rhodes High School. In Big Questions Debate, Hunter Kestranek came in third place while Kate Smith come in sixth place in her first tournament ever and Jacob Gertsburg came in eighth place. In Public Forum Debate, the team of Peter Como and Brett King placed fifth while the team of Bobby Delzell and Beckham Cornell placed seventh. Eden Truax placed third in Interpretation, while Devin Cinch placed fourth in Congressional Debate.
Solon: 1/26/19
Congratulations to Devin Cinch for placing third in Congressional Debate and to Eden Truax for placing sixth in Interpretation. In Big Questions Debate, where students are debating whether humans are primarily driven by self-interest, Jacob Gertsburg placed fourth, Elena Perrine placed eighth, and Hunter Kestranek placed ninth. Competing in a new event this week (Public Forum Debate), Peter Como and Brett King placed ninth with a three win and one loss record where they debated whether the US should prioritize reducing the national debt over promoting economic growth. A big welcome to Payton Fetzner and Alexa Hebert for competing for the first time at a speech and debate tournament.
John Carroll University: 1/5/19
In Big Questions Debate, Peter Como placed third, Brett King placed fifth, Hunter Kestranek placed seventh, and Jacob Gertsburg placed eighth. In Original Oratory, Mikey Surtel placed fourth as did Eden Truax in Interpretation. In Congressional Debate, Devin Cinch placed seventh. In Public Forum Debate, Bobby Delzell and Beckham Cornell placed seventh. In Declamation, Erriana Strong placed eighth and Olivia Reily placed ninth. Rounding out the team were Conner Ries and Nathan Rolf who beat a Brecksville-Broadview Heights Public Forum Team, and Lillian McCleery who gave several speeches in Congressional Debate.
Kenston: 12/15/18
KMS’s speech and debate team hosted its annual tournament and competed against ten middle schools. In Big Questions Debate, Jacob Gertsburg placed 2nd, Elena Perrine placed 3rd, Aiden Truax placed 4th, Brett King placed 5th, and Peter Como placed 7th. In Oratory, Michael Surtel placed 4th. Eden Truax placed 5th in Interpretation. Beckham Cornell and Bobby Delzell won half of their debates, defeating teams from West Geauga and Brecksville-Broadview Heights. Competing in their first tournament ever were Nathan Rolf and Conner Ries in Pubic Forum Debate, who defeated a team from Chagrin Falls. Also competing for the first time were Olivia Reily in Declamation and Lily McCleery in Congressional Debate. Congrats to all sixteen students from KMS who competed!
Vermilion: 12/8/18
Nine middle schoolers traveled to Vermilion to compete against numerous other middle schools. Peter Como placed second in Big Questions Debate, Madeline Ramsey placed third in Oratory, Elena Perrine placed fourth in Big Questions Debate, and Devin Cinch placed sixth in Congressional Debate. Brett King, Eden Truax and Beckham Cornell, as well as Elena and Devin, competed in their first ever speech and debate tournament. Rounding out the team were returning team members Bobby Delzell and Jacob Gertsburg who have been helping their new teammates prepare for the last few weeks.
Mentor: 11/17/18
The two KMS students taking advantage of a middle school speech and debate early-bird tournament opportunity had amazing results. Peter Como was the Middle School tournament champion in Big Questions Debate going undefeated at Mentor while Jacob Gertsburg placed fourth.
States: 3/10/18
Kenston’s speech and debate team competed in Vermilion at the first ever Middle School State Championship, sponsored by The Ohio Speech and Debate Association. Cadie Matty placed fourth in Congressional Debate, Jacob Gertsburg placed fourth and Peter Como placed sixth in Big Questions Debate, and Justin Spehar placed sixth in Declamation. Just missing earning a medal were Ryann Greulich who placed seventh in Congressional Debate and Micah Greenberg who placed ninth in Interpretation.
Rhodes: 2/10/18
Placing at the tournament were Mike Greenberg, Second in Interpretation; Ryann Greulich, Fifth in Congressional Debate; Peter Como, Fourth in Big Questions Debate; and Jacob Gertsburg, who placed Sixth in Big Questions Debate in his first tournament.
Solon: 1/27/18
Congratulations to Cadie Matty for placing 1st in Congressional Debate and to Mike Greenberg for placing 3rd in Interpretation. Also placing in the top half of Congressional Debate were Cooper Akers, Sara Strongosky, and Peter Como, who with Cadie were among nine KMS students competing in Congressional Debate, a Kenston record!
Brecksville-broadview Heights: 1/20/18
Peter Como placed fifth in Big Questions Debate, and Cadie Matty placed sixth in Congressional Debate. A special shout out to Sophia Alandt and Sara Strongosky for doing great at their first tournament ever. Congrats to Dominic Clark for being elected Presiding Officer in Congressional Debate.
John Carroll University And Hathaway Brown School: 1/6/18
Mike Greenberg was crowned tournament champion in Interpretation. Other noteworthy results include Peter Como, 6th place Big Questions Debate; Justin Spehar, 7th place Declamation; and Cadie Matty, 10th place Congressional Debate
Kenston: 12/16/17
Crowned tournament champion was Madeline Ramsey in Declamation, while Justin Spehar placed 4th in that event. Mike Greenberg placed 6th in Interpretation. In Congressional Debate, Cadie Mattie placed 4th, Cooper Akers placed 7th, and Dominic Clark and Lauren Loveman tied for 9th. Competing in their first tournaments ever were Lauren Loveman in Congressional Debate, Molly Bochenek in Oratory, and Autumn Marshall in Big Questions Debate.
Vermilion: 10/28/17
In Congressional Debate, Cadie Matty placed 1st, Alex Prodan placed 2nd and Ryann Greulich placed 3rd. Peter Como went undefeated and placed first in Big Questions Debate. Competing for the first time in Congressional Debate were Madeline Ramsey and Dominic Clark.
Revere: 3/11/17
Seventeen KMS students competed at Revere High School. Dylan Britton placed third in Declamation. Seventh graders Mike Greenberg, Dominic Clark, and Jake Eastburn also deserve special mention for doing great while competing in their first speech tournament ever. The entire team’s hard work and achievements throughout the season caused the Ohio High School Speech League to recognize KMS & KHS at the tournament as one of the Most Promising Programs in Ohio.
Gilmour: 2/11/17
The Duo Interpretation team of Adler Weber and Jason Spehar were the tournament champions for the third straight tournament. Dylan Britton placed second in Declamation, and Alex Prodan placed third in United States Extemporaneous Speaking. Kenston’s debaters had a seven win and two loss record for the second tournament in a row. Out of the thirty-two Public Forum Debate teams at the tournament, the team of Okan Kardzhala and Marcus Novak placed second with a three win and no loss record, and the team of Lauren Drozdowski and Claire Rottman placed ninth with a two win and one loss record. The team of Johnny Martino and Henry Cregar also had a two win and one loss record.
Solon: 1/28/17
Placing first were the team of Jason Spehar and Adler Weber in Duo Interpretation, for their second championship. In Extemporaneous Speaking, Ryann Greulich placed seventh and Zhen Henrikson placed eighth. Kenston’s Public Forum Debate teams had a combined record of seven wins and two losses. Partners Henry Cregar and Brennan Fisher went undefeated and placed fourth out of 33 teams. Lauren Drozdowski and Claire Rottman placed sixth, while Okan Kardzhala and Marcus Novak placed tenth.
Hathaway Brown: 12/17/16
The Public Forum Debate team of Henry Cregar and Brennan Fisher went undefeated and placed first while the team of Okan Kardzhala and Marcus Novak also went undefeated and placed fourth. In United States Extemporaneous Speaking, Alexander Prodan placed fourth, Zhen Henrikson placed fifth, and Ryann Greulich placed sixth. Competing in her first tournament, Dylan Britton placed fifth in Declamation.
Vermilion: 12/10/16
Placing first were the team of Jason Spehar and Adler Weber in Duo Interpretation and Alexander Prodan in United States Extemporaneous Speaking. Placing second were Johnny Martino in Congressional Debate, the team of Samantha Henrikson and Zhen Henrikson in Duo Interpretation, and Ryann Greulich in United States Extemporaneous Speaking. The Public Forum Debate team of Okan Kardzhala and Marcus Novak placed fourth.
Brecksville-broadview Heights: 11/12/16
The Public Forum Debate team of Okan Kardzhala and Marcus Novak went undefeated and placed first while the team of Claire Rottman and Lauren Drozdowski placed second. In Extemporaneous Speaking, Ryann Greulich and Alexander Prodan tied for first place. Also lodging wins in their first debate tournament were the Public Forum Debate teams of Henry Cregar & Brennan Fisher, and Nathan Gaskins & Nick Calvello.