Ten debaters from Wellington High School have qualified to represent Wolverine Nation at the 2024 Florida Forensic League State Championships, which is taking place on the campus of Wellington High School, March 2-3.
In Congressional Debate, Patrick McDermott was an auto-qualifier based on his performances at tournaments within the State of Florida between Sept. 1 and Feb. 1. Izzy Parissos also auto-qualified for Humorous Interpretation under the same guidelines. This is the first year that the FFL has incorporated a statewide point system for Florida students based on competitions within the state.
Also qualifying for the state championships were Ahna Guillaume in both Program of Oral Interpretation and Dramatic Interpretation; the Duo Interpretation team of Diego Calderon and Michael Diaz; Connor Mack in Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking; Melody Pratz in Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking; Olivia Winton in Original Oratory; and the Public Forum Debate team of Emma Gardner and Ewa Tryniszewski.
Connor Mack also earned his Degree of Excellence, surpassing the National Speech & Debate Association’s 150-point mark.
The state qualifier came on the heels of Wellington’s stellar performance at the 69th Barkley Forum for High Schools at Emory University, Jan. 26-28. Ahna Guillaume advanced to quarterfinals in Program of Oral Interpretation, finishing 23rd overall, while Olivia Winton placed 30th in Original Oratory.
