Forensics Team Continues to Speak with Excellence

Cedarville University’s forensics team continues to stand out among the competition. 

In its competition at the Novice National Tournament in early March just north of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Cedarville’s team won the national championship in debate. One week later at the National Christian College Forensics Championship in Nashville, Tennessee, Cedarville placed third overall but came home with several individual honors.  

Cedarville’s national championship was keyed by first-year debate and speech specialists Serine Warner, a junior majoring in psychology from Westerville, Ohio, and Noah Hollenbach, a freshman political science major from Moseley, Virginia. Warner claimed the top prize in the After Dinner Speaking category, while Hollenbach placed second in the same category. Hollenbach went on to win the individual debate competition by winning his six debates. Teammate Isaac Steward, a sophomore from Abilene, Texas, majoring in information technology management, finished as a semi-finalist. 

“The most important skill I have learned from being a part of the forensics team this year is how to listen well,” said Hollenbach. “It is only after we learn to listen that we can speak and debate skillfully.” 

Several Cedarville students earned high honors at the National Christian College Forensics Championship, including:  

Hollenbach was the top Novice Debate Speaker. 

Nathanael Kolssak, sophomore communication student from Winnetka, Illinois, was the top debate speaker in JV debate. He also took second place in Novice Extemporaneous Speaking and third in Novice Impromptu Speaking. 

Spicer Wadman, sophomore physics student from Hillsboro, Virginia, was named the national champion in Poetry Innovation and second place in Dramatic Interpretation. 

Amelia Elkins, junior political science student from Fort Wright, Kentucky, took second place in Interpretation of Faith Literature. 

Micaiah O’Malley, senior linguistics and Spanish student from Martinsville, Indiana, finished second in Rhetorical Criticism. 

In After Dinner Speaking, Warner placed second, while Hollenbach was fourth.   

Cedarville’s forensics team’s Readers Theatre team claimed the national championship for the third consecutive year as O’Malley, Hollenbach, Steward, Warner, Elkins and Deidra Hall, sophomore psychology student from Pawcatuck, Connecticut, excelled in their individual competitions.  

Standing out among the field of colleges is something the forensics team is developing a reputation for, and winning individual and team awards is leading the way to national prominence.