La Cueva Cave Classic 2023 Results
The team competed in the only local NMSDA tournament to be run virtually this year: the La Cueva Cave Classic, Fri–Sat, 1/13–1/14.
Although we have adored getting to compete back in person again, we are grateful that the league has found ways to offer occasional virtual tournaments as well, as we know this makes competition more accessible for many teams. Despite having to compete virtually once again, the team found some excellent ways to celebrate one another. I was particularly delighted to see so many students willing to try new events, as over half of our individual entries came from either first-time competitors or students trying a new event for the first time!
Some specific team shout-outs were provided to:
Irene — for “doing a a great job at her very first tournament” especially in what one competitor called “one of the scariest events!”
Becca — for “giving kind and helpful comments” to new students and having “crazy good” topic ideas in Impromptu
Ayla — for having such a strong run in Impromptu and for checking in on other competitors — she “made the experience much less stressful”
Leo — for helping students with practice rounds and “branching out into extemp!”
Aarush — for “helping me with some of the debate work and making others feel more confident” and for “branching out from their main events and trying extemp”
Ell — for “trying DI for the first time!”
Thomas — for “being so encouraging” when students momentarily felt freaked out about the competition
Congratulations to the following for their specific achievements:
1st place CHAMPION in Program Oral Interp — Thomas Wray (Received all 1’s!)
1st place CHAMPION in Informative Speaking — Ben Raihane
1st place CHAMPION in Impromptu Speaking — Becca Faber
2nd place Finalist in Impromptu Speaking — Ayla Zomermannd
As a whole, we earned top awards in half of the events that we entered in, with three specific tournament champions! Congratulations to all for yet another successful weekend with such a positive orientation towards learning and growth. It was delightful to see so many students willing to try new things and grow from them!
Next up, students will compete at the V. Sue Cleveland tournament in Rio Rancho. Stay tuned!
