Katherine Langford | Reporter

---

Avon Speech and Debate team, who now has over 70 participants, was ready to show the Avon sprit at the Fisher’s Meet.  There were over 40 teams competing from around the country. 

Junior Halima Alloosh, a captain on the team said it was a good experience.

“It was the first time we had used the NSDA website so of course there [were] small bumps in the road, but all the judges were very understanding,” said Alloosh.

Alloosh, who placed fourth in broadcasting, believes there is room for improvement.

“While I’m happy with how I did with Fishers, I want to be the best,” said Alloosh.

Sophomore Zainab Syed, a first-year member, thinks there are some positives to a virtual meet.

“The virtual meets are a lot less nerve-wracking, so it’s a great way to gain some confidence before in-person meets,” said Syed.

Syed, who placed first in her event, gave a ten-minute memorized speech about why feminism is still important today. 

“Today, I feel as though most people think that women are completely equal to men, so feminism is an unnecessary idea. I want to use my voice to show people that inequality between genders is still an issue today,” said Syed.

Freshman Grant Shirley, who is on the debate team, also participated in last Saturday’s meet. His event Congress argued possible legislation.

“I really enjoyed the bill to remove sanctions on North Korea. Many different sides and views were taken, and that debate lasted the longest,” said Shirley.

All three speech team members said they are happy with how the year has gone.

“I think the team did fantastic and everyone worked really hard. I couldn’t be prouder of the Speech and Debate team,” said Alloosh.

---

Students that placed: Grant Shirley-6th, Connor Brownfield-4th, Ian Lynam-3rd, Vanessa Navarro-6th, Emily Kihlstron-5th, Elise Roberts-4th, Younique Jones-3rd, Morgan Jones and Olivia Fahy-1st, Rebecca Boyd-6th, Elshadai Aberra-3rd, Faith Kipkilei-4th, Josh Fairchild-3rd, Fiona Ko-1st, Emma Smith-4th, Kushi Kaur-2nd, Krishna Lathish-1st, Halima Alloosh-4th, Katherine Langford -2nd, Zainab Syed-1st