SPRINGFIELD, IL (November 4, 2022) - UIS's Speech and Debate Team attended their second tournament of the 22-23 competition season. The Online Asynchronous Tournament Series (OATS) is a season long set of competitions hosted asynchronously by Southwest Minnesota State University. The OATS 2 tournament took place from October 24th through October 28th and had 45 teams from across the nation in attendance.

Returning competitors Meghan Vlcek, Clark Morgan, and Lisette Cortes-Benitez represented UIS at this tournament, competing in extemporaneous speaking, impromptu speaking, and poetry interpretation respectively. To participate in this virtual competition, students recorded themselves presenting their speech and uploaded the videos for the judges to review.

"Our scores have improved from the first competition" notes Director Timothy Bill. "Even though this tournament was larger than our first, our scores improved as did our standings." Bill went on to note that Morgan was only a few placings away from advancing to semifinals in impromptu speaking.

The UIS Speech and Debate Team is open to undergraduate students of any major on campus. If you are interested in learning more about the team or finding out how to get involved, please email Director Bill via the address listed below.

The University of Illinois Springfield Speech and Debate Team is committed to training the next generation of civic leaders, public speakers, and communicators who are passionate about creating change in their communities. Students who are interested in joining the team should reach out to the coach Timothy Bill (tbill2@uis.edu) or check out the Speech & Debate website.