Monday, April 11, 2011

AFA All the Way

Last week the team returned home from the trip to Kearney, Nebraska for the American Forensics Association National Individual Events Tournament. We are happy to report that Andrea Durham and Terra Strong did an excellent job representing Tennessee State University at this highly competitive National Championship. Although the two of them only had 7 of the 1,524 event slots at the tournament, they earned 87.5 points for TSU - breaking down to an earned 12.5 points per event! Also, these points placed TSU 21st in Team Sweepstakes out of the 84 schools attending. Here's a full list of individual events won:


- Second Place, Program of Oral Interpretation - Terra Strong


- Third Place, Poetry Interpretation - Terra Strong


- Sixth Place, Dramatic Interpretation - Terra Strong


- Semi-Finalist, Dramatic Interpretation - Andrea Durham


The full results from the tournament can be viewed/downloaded here. We are so proud of Terra and Andrea for their three finals and one semi-final - this is a really impressive finish for any team, especially one with only two students! Also, we should mention that the AFA-NIET committee and the folks at the University of Nebraska, Kearney were excellent hosts. Although Kearney may not be our first choice for a vacation destination, the hospitality and well-run tournament made the trip truly enjoyable. Here are a few pictures from the event - I promise to be a more active photographer next tournament! Quarterfinal postings for Dramatic Interpretation - Terra and Andrea are near the bottom left.


Terra receiving her award for Third Place in Poetry Interpretation from Tournament Director Larry Schnoor.

Terra and Andrea looking lovely with their awards. In a couple of days we will be getting back on the road with the full team to attend the National Forensics Association Championship at Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. The tournament web site can be viewed here. We are grateful that this drive takes half as long as the drive to Kearney, and we look forward to bringing you more good news next week!