Twenty members of WKU’s national champion forensic team kicked off competition for the spring semester by winning two tournaments hosted on the campus of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

In addition to earning first place at both tournaments, WKU students qualified nearly 15 new events for the national tournament in April. WKU beat a number of large schools to win top honors this weekend, including the University of Alabama, the University of Florida, Louisiana State University, Tennessee State University, Belmont University, Florida State University and the University of Mississippi.

At the AFA district qualifying tournament, WKU was crowned team sweepstakes champion ahead of the University of Alabama and Belmont University. On Sunday, the WKU team competed at a second tournament, hosted by the University of Alabama, where the team won the team sweepstakes championship.

This semester, WKU team members will travel to Ohio, Missouri, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, California, Illinois, Indiana and Pennsylvania before wrapping up the semester at the national tournament hosted by Texas State University: San Marcos in April.

The team will split two ways this coming weekend, sending groups of students to St. Louis, Mo., and Athens, Ohio, for competition.

Results from the District-6 AFA Qualifier/”Black Warrior” Invitational are as follows:

• Matt Whitman, a senior from Austin, Texas, tournament champion in impromptu speaking and second in informative speaking at the AFA district tournament; sixth in informative speaking at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Gabriella Devia-Allen, a sophomore from Davie, Fla., tournament champion in communication analysis, third in prose interpretation and sixth in poetry interpretation at the AFA district tournament; third in communication analysis and sixth in poetry interpretation at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Ray Roberts, a freshman from Houston, Texas, tournament champion in duo interpretation (with Marshall Covert) and third in after-dinner speaking at the AFA district tournament; tournament champion in after-dinner speaking at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Tyler Dailey, a junior from Blue Springs, Mo., tournament champion in informative speaking and second in dramatic interpretation at the Black Warrior tournament; third in informative speaking, fourth in poetry interpretation and fifth in dramatic interpretation at the AFA district tournament.
• Janniqua Dawkins, a freshman from Hollywood, Fla., tournament champion in informative speaking, fifth in persuasive speaking and fifth in duo interpretation (with Austin Groves) at the AFA district tournament; third in informative speaking, fourth in persuasive speaking and fourth in duo interpretation (with Austin Groves) at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Marshall Covert, a sophomore from St. Paul, Minn., tournament champion in duo interpretation (with Ray Roberts) at the AFA district tournament; fifth in duo interpretation (with Laura Myers) and eighth in dramatic interpretation at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Amanda Waid, a junior from Symsonia, tournament champion in dramatic interpretation and sixth in persuasive speaking at the Black Warrior tournament; second in dramatic interpretation at the AFA district tournament.
• Laura Myers, a junior from Goodlettsville, Tenn., tournament champion in after-dinner speaking at the AFA district tournament; fifth in duo interpretation (with Marshall Covert) at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Nick Gilyard, a sophomore from Miami Gardens, Fla., second in duo interpretation (with Richard Heyne) and fourth in after-dinner speaking at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Richard Heyne, a sophomore from Sunrise, Fla., second in duo interpretation (with Nick Gilyard) at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Khristan Solliday, a senior from Mitchell, Ind., second in impromptu speaking at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Alexis Elliott, a sophomore from Kansas City, Mo., third in impromptu speaking at the AFA district tournament; tournament champion in impromptu speaking at the Black Warrior tournament.
• John Reynolds, a sophomore from Harlingen, Texas, third in dramatic interpretation at the AFA district tournament
• Spencer Orlowski, a sophomore from Davie, Fla., fourth in informative speaking and fifth in persuasive speaking at the Black Warrior tournament; sixth in persuasive speaking at the AFA district tournament.
• Austin Groves, a freshman from Blue Springs, Mo., fourth in duo interpretation (with Janniqua Dawkins) at the Black Warrior tournament; fifth in duo interpretation (with Janniqua Dawkins) at the AFA district tournament.
• Ellis Fraser, a freshman from Hodgenville, fourth in impromptu speaking at the Black Warrior tournament.
• Tiffany McLarty, a freshman from Bronx, N.Y., fourth in informative speaking at the AFA district tournament.
• Jamaque Newberry, a freshman from Tamarac, Fla., fifth in dramatic interpretation and fifth in poetry interpretation at the Black Warrior tournament.

Contact: Jace Lux, (270) 745-6340.