MavForensics Brings Home Championships from Sunflower Swing!

Hello speech lovers! MavForensics had an outstanding second tournament of the year at the Sunflower Swing, hosted by Bethel College and Sterling College, October 6th and 7th. Perhaps the biggest victory for the team, however, was surviving the weekend when almost everyone was sick. Cole competed in a DI round where he stopped speaking to cough for 45 seconds! He probably would've been better off staying home and resting, but you know how these things go: one minute, the students are fine, the next, they're struggling to speak! We all had a great weekend, but were also excited to return home and get some much-needed rest over Fall Break. Check out results:

                                  Photo: Team prepares for competition by warming up vocals and building energy!

Saturday, October 6th: 
Extemporaneous Speaking: 
Nithya Rajagopalan, 4th

Program of Oral Interpretation: 
Cole Evans, 2nd
Queeny Pimentel, 3rd
Dan Cutter, 4th

Duo Interpretation: 
Karlee Currin & Bridget Hames, 3rd
Catie Zaleski & Preston Prauner, 4th
Karlee Currin & Dan Cutter, 5th

Prose Interpretation: 
Trae Graham, 1st
Queeny Pimentel, 4th

Poetry Interpretation: 
Catie Zaleski, 1st
Cole Evans, 2nd
Trae Graham, 4th
Queeny Pimentel, 5th

Dramatic Interpretation: 
Trae Graham, 3rd
Karlee Currin, 6th

Persuasive Speaking: 
Nithya Rajagopalan, 1st
Bridget Hames, 2nd
Preston Prauner, 4th

After-Dinner Speaking:
Karlee Currin, 4th

Communication Analysis:
Nithya Rajagopalan, 5th

Individual Sweepstakes for Saturday: 
Nithya Rajagopalan, 3rd

Team Sweepstakes for Saturday: 
UNO, 1st

                                                             Photo: Trae Graham rehearses during warm-ups!

Sunday, October 7th: 
Extemporaneous Speaking: 
Nithya Rajagopalan, 2nd

Impromptu Speaking: 
Dan Cutter, 4th

Program of Oral Interpretation: 
Cole Evans, 1st
Queeny Pimentel, 3rd
Trae Graham, 4th
Dan Cutter, 5th

Duo Interpretation: 
Cole Evans & Trae Graham, 1st
Karlee Currin & Bridget Hames, 2nd
Karlee Currin & Dan Cutter, 5th
Catie Zaleski & Preston Prauner, 6th

Prose Interpretation: 
Cole Evans, 1st

Poetry Interpretation: 
Trae Graham, 1st
Queeny Pimentel, 2nd
Catie Zaleski, 3rd
Cole Evans, 4th

Dramatic Interpretation: 
Trae Graham, 1st
Karlee Currin, 6th

Persuasive Speaking: 
Bridget Hames, 1st
Nithya Rajagopalan, 3rd
Preston Prauner, 5th

After-Dinner Speaking:
Karlee Currin, 1st

Communication Analysis:
Nithya Rajagopalan, 4th

Individual Sweepstakes for Sunday:
Cole Evans & Trae Graham had an unbreakable tie for first place!

Team Sweepstakes for Sunday: 
UNO, 1st
UNL, 2nd
Hastings College, 3rd

Combined Individual Sweepstakes: 
Trae Graham, 1st
Cole Evans, 2nd

Combined Team Sweepstakes:
UNO, 1st

Thanks for reading and keeping up with our students! On October 20th and 21st, we will split squad. Cole, Trae, Queeny, and Lauren will compete at Creighton University. Karlee, Dan, Natalie, Nithya, Bridget, Preston, and Catie will travel to Minnesota State University-Mankato and Gustavus Adolphus College. To see results, follow us on Twitter @UNOforensics.

Mavs win Season Opener!

Hello speech lovers! The UNO squad had their season opener this weekend, September 28, 29, and 30th at Hutchinson Community College. We had a wonderful drive to Kansas on Thursday night, talking, singing, and enjoying the company of friends. Competition started on Friday! Here are results:

Hutchinson CC (Day 1):
Impromptu: Natalie Schneider, 4th.
Prose: Cole Evans, 2nd.
Duo: Queeny Pimentel & Lauren Ackerman, 1st. Cole Evans & Trae Graham, 2nd. Dan Cutter & Karlee Currin, 6th.
Extemp: Nithya Rajagopalan, 3rd.
Persuasion: Nithya Rajagopalan, 5th.
POI: Cole Evans, 1st. Queeny Pimentel, 3rd.
ADS: Karlee Currin, 1st.
CA: Nithya Rajagopalan, 3rd.
DI: Cole Evans, 1st. Trae Graham, 3rd.
POE: Queeny Pimentel, 1st. Trae Graham, 3rd. Catie Zaleski, 4th.

Individual Sweepstakes: Cole Evans, 1st. Queeny Pimentel, 3rd. Trae Graham, 4th.
Team Sweepstakes:  Mavs placed 1st in team sweepstakes for Day 1.

Photo: Preston Prauner, Catie Zaleski, and Natalie Schneider enjoy talking with friends before awards on Sunday night. 

Sterling College (Day 2): 
Prose: Lauren Ackerman, 1st Cole Evans, 2nd Queeny Pimentel, 3rd
Duo: Cole Evans and Trae Graham, 1st Queeny Pimentel and Lauren Ackerman, 2nd
Extemp: Natalie Schneider, 1st Nithya Rajagopalan, 6th
Persuasion: Bridget Hames, 3rd Nithya Rajagopalan, 5th
POI: Lauren Ackerman, 1st Cole Evans, 2nd Queeny Pimentel, 5th
ADS: Karlee Currin, 2nd CA: Nithya Rajagopalan, 6th
DI: Trae Graham, 5th
Poetry: Trae Graham, 1st

Individual Sweepstakes: Cole Evans, 1st Lauren Ackerman, 2nd Trae Graham, 3rd
Team Sweepstakes:  Mavs placed 1st in team sweepstakes on Sunday.

Combined Sweepstakes: Cole Evans placed 1st in combined individual sweeps. UNO placed 1st in combined team sweeps.

Photo: Queeny Pimentel and Lauren Ackerman practice duo during warm-ups. Karlee Currin warms-up her ADS to the white board!  

The team will head to Bethel College on Friday, October 5th for the annual Sunflower Swing. Follow breaks and results on Twitter @UNOforensics.

Welcome to 2012!

It seems like yesterday that we were in San Marcos, TX for the amazing AFA-NIET hosted by Texas State University. After taking a short rest this summer, we are thrilled to introduce the new team! We have yet to take a full team photo because, well, the first few weeks of school have been a little crazy! But here are some photos of the team getting to work! Our first tournament will be at Hutchinson Community College in Hutchinson KS, September 29th and 30th. We are geared up for the new season and thankful for your support and enthusiasm. Go Mavs!

Trae Graham, Karlee Currin, Dan Cutter, and Preston Prauner hanging out in Abbie's office!

The new faces of MavForensics on their first official campus tour! Queeny Pimentel, Bridget Hames, Catie Zaleski, Preston Prauner (not pictured but loved equally, Nithya Rajagopalan). Be sure to catch our weekly team updates, posted every Monday. Cheers until then!

Mavs End Semester with Team Championship!

Hello friends of forensics! The team is thrilled to share that they brought home a championship team trophy from the end-of-semester showcase tournament! For the past several years, the University of Nebraska at Kearney has teamed up with Concordia College of Minnesota to host the last tournament of the semester. On the second day of the tournament, schools are invited to "showcase" their events. Students dust off their qualified events and bring everything they have worked on all semester to the showcase event. Many nationally-ranked schools participate in the tournament. This vibrant tournament features the stiffest competition UNO Forensics has faced all year. UNO is proud to bring home two team championships, one for the Lopers are from Venus tournament (held Saturday, December 3rd) and a championship from the Cobbers are from Mars showcase tournament (held Sunday, December 4th). Here are the results! Showcase Results! Traelon Graham: 1st in Poetry, 2nd in duo with Cole, 2nd in DI, 2nd in Individual Sweepstakes. Cole Evans: 2nd in Poetry, 2nd in Duo with Trae, 3rd in Duo with Tessie, Prose semis. Tessie Stednitz: 1st in POI, 3rd in Duo with Cole, 3rd in Poetry. Stephanie Larsen: 1st in Informative. Lauren Ackerman: 1st in Prose. Tunette Powell: 1st in Persuasion. Niveditha Rajagopalan: 2nd in ADS, 3rd in Extemp. Stephanie Henderson: 2nd in ADS, 2nd in POI, 4th in Poetry. Karlee Currin: 3rd in Prose, 6th in DI. Joy Kathurima: 3rd in ADS. Natalie Schneider: 4th in Impromptu.

Results from Saturday! Cole Evans: 1st in Prose Tessie Stednitz: 1st in POI Traelon Graham: 2nd in POI Stephanie Henderson: 1st in ADS Jacki Miller: 3rd in Extemp Karlee Currin: 5th in Prose Hope Stanley: 7th in Informative

Now that the first semester has drawn to a close, the team is looking forward to some much needed rest (and sledding at Coach Abbie's family farm). Happy holidays everyone! We'll see you again in January!

UNO Forensics Starts Strong!

The UNO Forensics team brought home two team championships after their first weekend of competition! The team traveled to Hutchinson, KS for the first tournament of the year. We had many adventures, including a picnic in the park in Fairview, KS and a squirrel funeral at the tournament. Highlights include: Senior Tessie Stednitz won individual sweepstakes on both Saturday and Sunday and everyone on the team broke over the course of the weekend. It was a great 2011-2012 kick-off tournament! Check out results!

Saturday, September 24th:
Tessie Stednitz: 1st in Poetry, 1st in Drama, 1st in Duo with Cole Evans, 2nd in Prose. Overall Individual Sweepstakes champion!
Niveditha Rajagopalan: 1st in Impromptu, 2nd in Extemp
Stephanie Henderson: 1st in POI, 4th in Duo with Lauren Ackerman
Cole Evans: 1st in Duo with Tessie, 3rd in Duo with Trae Graham, 4th in Prose
Trae Graham: 2nd in Poetry, 3rd in Duo with Cole, 6th in Drama, Impromptu Semis
Joy Kathurima: 4th in Extemp
Stephanie Larsen: 2nd in Informative, 6th in Persuasion
Hope Stanley: 3rd in Persuasion
Blaine Miller: 2nd in Persuasion
Jacki Miller: Semis in Extemp

Individual Sweepstakes:
1. Tessie Stednitz (UNO)
2. Brock Ingmire (KSU)
3. Niveditha Rajagopalan (UNO)

Sunday, September 25th:

Tessie Stednitz: 1st in Poetry, 1st in Drama, 1st in Prose, 4th in Duo with Cole. Overall Individual Sweepstakes champion!
Lauren Ackerman: 1st in Duo with Steph Henderson, 1st in POI
Steph Henderson: 1st in Duo with Lauren, 2nd in POI
Trae Graham: 2nd in Duo with Cole Evans, 2nd in Poetry, 4th in Prose
Cole Evans: 2nd in Duo with Trae, 3rd in Poetry, 3rd in Prose, 4th in Duo with Tessie
Niveditha Rajagopalan: 2nd in Informative, 3rd in Extemp, 6th in CA, Impromptu Semis
Stephanie Larsen: 4th in Info, 5th in Persuasion, 6th in duo with Karlee
Karlee Currin: 5th in Drama, 6th in Duo with Steph L
Dan Cutter: 5th in POI
Blaine Miller: 4th in Persuasion
Hope Stanley: 6th in Persuasion
Natalie Schneider: Semis in Impromptu
Jacki Miller: Semis in Impromptu & Extemp

Individual Sweepstakes:
1st: Tessie Stednitz (UNO)
2nd: Cole Evans (UNO) and Mike Dvorak (Hastings College) tied for 2nd place

The team will travel to Bethel College over Fall Break to compete for the second time this fall. If you are interested in watching them perform, just e-mail Abbie Syrek at asyrek@unomaha.edu and you can swing by practice. We'd love to have you!

Photo: Senior Tessie Stednitz won Individual Sweeps both days. She is featured here with coach Cameron Logsdon.

UNO Graduate Teaching Assistantships

UNO Forensics is pleased to announce that we will have a coaching/teaching GTA position available beginning in the Fall, 2011 semester. This position includes teaching 1 section of Public Speaking Fundamentals, weekly office hours, and coaching/traveling with the forensics team. Applications are due on Tuesday, March 1st.

Here is an application check-list to walk you through the process. Please contact Abbie Syrek at (402) 850-1695 or via e-mail at asyrek@unomaha.edu if you have any questions. Please feel free to forward this information along to anyone you think might be interested. We look forward to getting your application!

Graduate School Checklist:

____ Complete the Electronic Application Found at: http://www.unomaha.edu/wwwcomm/graduate/policies.php#admissions

____ Pay the $45 application fee

You can do this online by visiting the cashiering website (link follows). In the last paragraph (above the rotating credit card) please click on "Graduate Application Fee" which is a link to a short form to pay the fee. Cashiering link: http://cashiering.unomaha.edu/

____ 3 Letters of Recommendation

____ 500-word personal essay (saved as a PDF file) that answers the following questions:

1. Why have you chose the UNO School of Communication Master’s Degree program?

2. What are your areas of interest and research? Do you have an idea for a proposed

project, if so please describe.

3. What are your personal or professional plans after you complete the master’s degree?

What do you want to do with the degree?

____ Request an official transcript from all undergraduate institutions you attended and have it sent to UNO

____ Upload resume

School of Communication Assistantship Checklist:

____ Complete this Application: http://www.unomaha.edu/wwwcomm/graduate.php#gta

____ Submit resume

____ Attach a personal essay (not exceeding 1 page) that answers the following questions:

1. What experience/qualifications do you have that qualify you to be a Graduate Teaching Assistant?

2. Why do you want to be a GTA at UNO? (Why do you want to teach and coach forensics?)

Application materials and other supporting documents should be addressed to:

University of Nebraska at Omaha

Office of Graduate Studies

6001 Dodge St, EAB 203

Omaha, NE 68182-0209

NOTE: Once you submit your application, it will be processed within 1 to 2 business days, at which time your mavlink To-Do list will be updated.

UNO Takes State

It was a historic weekend for the UNO Maverick Forensics Team. For the first time in the program's history, the squad took home the title as the top individual events program in Nebraska.

Facing tough competition including several teams consistently ranked among the elite in the nation, the Mavs set personal records in terms of events that made it to finals and racked up seven individual event championships.

Results included the following:

Poetry

Cameron Logsdon - 4th place
Cole Evans - 3rd place (also Top Novice)
Iven Mendoza - 2nd place
Allison Henri - State Champion

Communication Analysis

Hope Stanley - Top Novice
Blaine Miller - 7th place
Niveditha Rajagopalan - State Champion

Program of Oral Interpretation

Cole Evans - 8th place (also Top Novice)
Allison Henri - 6th place
Iven Mendoza - 4th place
Tessie Stednitz - 2nd place
Cameron Logsdon - State Champion

Extemporaneous Speaking

Niveditha Rajagopalan - 6th place

Duo Interpretation

Blaine Miller/Cole Evans - 4th place
Allison Henri/Tessie Stednitz - 2nd place
Cameron Logsdon/Iven Mendoza - State Champions

After Dinner Speaking

Joy Kathurima - Top Novice
Stephanie Larsen - 5th place
Niveditha Rajagopalan - 2nd place

Informative Speaking

Niveditha Rajagopalan - 3rd place
Allison Henri - State Champion

Prose Interpretation

Cole Evans - 3rd place (also Top Novice)
Iven Mendoza - State Champion

Impromptu Speaking

Brian Robinson - 2nd place

Dramatic Interpretation

Traelon Graham - 5th place (also Top Novice)
Tessie Stednitz - 4th place
Cameron Logsdon - 2nd place
Iven Mendoza - State Champion

Persuasive Speaking

Brian Robinson - 4th place
Niveditha Rajagopalan - 2nd place*

*By placing 2nd, Niveditha qualified for the Interstate Oratory Competition at James Madison University in Virginia. It is the oldest speaking competition in North America, and the top two finishers from each state in the country qualify to compete.

Niveditha Rajagopalan placed 3rd in Individual Sweeps, while Iven Mendoza won top overall speaker in Individual Sweeps.

UNO also won the "Quality Award," which is awarded to the team that scores the most amount of points given the size of their entry.

UNO placed first overall in the Individual Events competition.

The team will travel to Manhattan, Kansas and host a tournament on campus before turning their focus to the American Forensics Association National Tournament held at Kearney, Nebraska beginning April 2nd.