Editor's note: Bri Kirkham works for the Daily News
Three members of Ball State’s speech team made it past the preliminary rounds to place nationally at the National Forensics Association Speech competition.
Senior journalism news and telecommunications major Bri Kirkham won four awards, including being the national champion in rhetorical criticism. Freshman Cade Heaton, a political science major, was a quarterfinalist in extemporaneous category, and senior English and French major Lauren Seitz was a quarterfinalist in impromptu speaking.
Heaton participated in speech in high school, but in an event that does not exist at the college level. Extemporaneous speakers get 30 minutes to prepare a seven-minute speech after receiving a political question.
“I didn’t actually expect to break to quarters,” Heaton said. “Prepping for nationals was intense. The whole team stayed in a hotel the day before, and we drilled our speeches all day. Speak, eat, speak, sleep. I felt like I was in an oratory army.”
Heaton described his mood during competitions as a mix of stress and eagerness.
“[The competition] was really high energy, punctuated by moments of bittersweetness when I gave a speech for the last time. Awards were insanely exciting,” he said. “I nearly lost my mind when my teammate [Kirkham] won Rhetorical Criticism.”
Seitz competed in her fourth and final national speech competition this year. She also placed nationally last year in impromptu speaking as well.
Impromptu speakers have a total of seven minutes to prepare and give a speech. Seitz said she spends about 90 seconds preparing, and speaks for the rest of the time.
For the quarterfinal round, she was given a Ball jar full of thumbtacks and had to talk about a bigger idea that the object represented.
"I was so excited [to make quarterfinals]," she said. "There's kind of this pressure of 'Am I gonna make it?' I'm surprised but also really proud of all the work I've done."
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