OCC wins over Irvine in debate competition

The Orange Coast College Speech and Debate Team earned the top spot this weekend at the Pacific Southern California Forensics Assn.’s Fall Championship Tournament.

The event at Cal State Long Beach drew participants from more than 40 schools around the country, according to a news release.

It is one of the biggest such tournaments in the country, the release said.

OCC beat out longtime rival Irvine Valley College by 51 points, while IVC topped El Camino College by 4 points.

“It was a fantastic feeling to win by such a huge margin,” Christopher DeSurra, director of forensics, said in a statement.

A slate of individual students also won honors. They are Abel Diaz, Alissa Duong, Christina Nguyen, Kevin Herrejon, Lexi Strole, Matt Khosroabadi, Sam Brady, Ron Banks and Ryan Tran.

According to Sherana Polk, debate director, the Pirates won events in every speech category, including Limited Preparation, Platform Speaking and Oral Interpretation.

—Jill Cowan

Twitter: @JillCowan