By Liz Neuner
A team of 11 comes together for hours of practice, long road trips, numerous awards and conferences. Perfecting every last detail in preparation for the national title.
The measure of success here is in the framing of words, not the execution of athleticism.
The LSU Speech and Debate Team started their year off with a sweep.
“Our first tournament we swept which mean we won the whole tournament with the most points., said Lauren Leist, member. “Our second tournament we got fifth place on the first day and sixth place on the second day.”
The Speech and Debate team may not get as much recognition as other clubs and athletics on campus, but they contribute just as much bling to the LSU trophy case.
“We win so many awards at tournaments because individually we win a lot,” says Leist.
The enthusiasm for the team seems to radiate off its members, especially Vice President Lance Bordelon who has been on the team for three years.
“We’re actually a pretty awesome little gem in a sad storm of organizations on campus,” says Bordelon.
Operating on a $6,000 budget, the team holds tournaments and works with the Baton Rouge community to raise money.
“This year we’re really focusing on volunteering.” Bordelon said of the team’s service.
Between raising money for their budget and volunteering, the Speech and Debate team puts in countless hours to perfect their prepared works, which range from poetry and reading to public addresses and current issues.
“Public addresses are prewritten speeches that we memorize and deliver,” Leist explains.  “At the beginning we spend an entire weekend writing our speeches and as a piece gets more stable we’ll spend at least a couple of hours a week on them.”
The speech side of the team chooses their own topics and develops the scripts with a coach. The debate side will be given different topics for each tournament. They then present their prepared works to a group of five or six competitors and a judge.
Those in the room individually rank them and judge’s sheets are posted declaring who is invited back for the final round. An awards ceremony follows.
The points from each tournament are added up to qualify for nationals.
“It’s a continual process to get qualifications to go to nationals,” Leist says. “You have to qualify in four events for varsity.”
Bordelon further explained the point system saying, “You have to get a final score of eight or less to qualify for nationals, so you have to place first or second in at least two tournaments.”
Leist, who is in five events in each tournament for her speech, says each person goes through their events twice before the final round.
Bordelon has competed in all six of his events three times in one day in their last tournament.
“It’s such a blast, it’s an adrenaline rush,” Bordelon says of the competitions.
The team gets to travel all around the country, most recently to Houston and Nashville for their last two tournaments.
The team attributes their success in the last four years, going from 75th rank to 25th with only six people, to their coach, Chaz Womelsdorf. Womelsdorf is a Ph.D. candidate from the University of Alabama.
“We adopted a lot of [Alabama’s] ideal,” says Bordelon. “We would not be where we are without Chaz.”
Despite their success and constant goal to make it to nationals, the Speech and Debate team stays grounded by working hard and remembering the pursuit of intellect.
“It’s fun, ” says Bordelon. “We meet new people, we travel around the country, but we don’t let out brains turn to mush.”
The Speech and Debate team does not hold try-outs and anyone is welcome to join.
“The benefits are endless,” Leist says. “It helps you with confidence, speaking ability and poise.”
“I just love that I have something to put my energy into,” Bordelon says through his speeches he feels he makes a difference. “People actually listen.”
And it’s not just for one specific major, according to Leist, it’s beneficial to all regardless of area of study.
“It’s truly one of the best things you can do to prepare yourself for a professional career.”
To see how the Speech and Debate team is doing on their pursuit to nationals, check out the bulletin board inside Coates Hall near the Union entrance.
 
 
Liz Neuner [email protected], 314-504-8165
Contacts:
Lance Bordelon 337-254-4939
Lauren Leist 601-319-5563
http://appl003.lsu.edu/artsci/cmstweb.nsf/$Content/Mixon+Lyceum+Debate?OpenDocument
http://appl003.lsu.edu/artsci/cmstweb.nsf/index

Photo caption:
SpeechandDebate: Lauren Leist works on her speech.
Video caption:
SpeechandDebate: Lauren Leist delivers a portion of her speech.