COSTA MESA : Orange Coast College Places 2nd in Debate

Orange Coast College finished second in a national community college debate tournament that drew 71 teams from across the country.

The College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn, Ill., won with 333 points. The victory last week took away Orange Coast College’s chances for a third consecutive national title in the Phi Rho Pi competition.

“We didn’t lose the tournament,” said Orange Coast College speech coach Peg Taylor. “DuPage won it. They were too good.”

Moorpark College in Ventura County placed third and also gave Orange Coast College students some tough competition, said Kevin Dawes, who won three gold medals and a bronze at the national tournament in Costa Mesa.

“I’m ecstatic that we were able to get that position because of all the different schools there,” said Dawes, 20, a sophomore in political science.

The students competed in 16 speaking categories, which included impromptu, persuasion and prose. Dawes and his partner, Jennafer LaPaglia, won medals in King Debate, in which the two competed against a team from another college on the topic of trade policies toward China. Dawes and LaPaglia contended that the United States could affect human rights in that country by revoking trade privileges.

“It’s a case that I believe in very strongly and I’m sure that helped,” Dawes said.

He also won medals in Lincoln-Douglas Debate, in which he argued the same topic against a single member of an opposing team; and extemporaneous speech, in which he was given 30 minutes to prepare a seven-minute speech on an international or national issue selected by a judge.

Dawes also won a gold medal in impromptu speech--a shorter version of extemporaneous speaking.

“It’s changed me,” he said. “It has made me more confident in myself. It’s really matured me.”

Coach Norm Fricker 20 years ago was a member of the Orange Coast College debate team that also placed second in the national competition. Now, he is one of four head coaches at the college who prepare students for their tournaments.

“The growth that our students achieve is a lot more important” than winning the tournament, he said. “We’re very comfortable with how we ended up.”

The students are now busy with future events, which include offering a public performance of their skills May 17 and hosting a high school debate tournament.

Since 1979, the Orange Coast College speech and debate team has won five national titles, including back-to-back wins in 1979-80 and 1989-90.