1/9/10
Mineola, NY - The Bronx Prep Speech Team broke into 2010 in a big way on Saturday with every competing member of the team showing marked improvement at the Chaminade Invitational tournament on Long Island. Norberto Troncoso, Alethea Brown, and Monica Lindsay all took huge strides and made major progress, while Keegon Robinson, Tiffany McLarty and Sahirah Johnson had huge days and finished at the top in their respective events.
Besides the win by Long Island's favorite football team, the surging New York Jets, the big story on Saturday was the Duo team of Keegon and Tiffany, who joined forces to present The Shipment - a ten-minute cutting of Young Jean Lee's experimental play. They tore through the preliminary rounds like the Jets running game, before lighting up a packed house in Finals and fninishing in second place. Their finish earned them some serious hardware (on display in the Library) and even more importantly, a half-qualification for the NYS championships. Another finish like that at this weekend's tournament will earn them a slot in this year's state championships - the Super Bowl of the New York Forensics world - with far better odds to win than 50-1.
Meanwhile, Sahirah Johnson made the most successful debut of a Bronx Prep speech competitor in recent memory. Competing in Oral Interpretation against students with years of experience, she finished 2nd in each of her three preliminary rounds, tying the score needed to make Finals, and earning an Honorable Mention. Of the 124 students competing in OI on Saturday, Sahirah finished in a tie for 16th. Her successful start was almost as impressive as a rookie quarterback delivering his franchise's first playoff win in five years.
The Jets head to San Diego this weekend for their competition, but the BP speech team will stay much closer to home, competing at Regis and Loyola High Schools on the Upper East Side. The team will send more competitors and will be represented in nearly every competition event as BP Speech continues to expand and the team members continue to improve. Here's hoping that hard work, focus and determination during this week's practices will lead to another weekend of dual success.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Monday, December 21, 2009
Road Trip!
Bronx Prep Speech Brings Twenty to Virginia as Program Continues its Expansion
Fairfax, VA - The BP Speech Team competed in the Patriot Games over the first weekend of December at the campus of George Mason University outside of Washington, D.C., fielding its biggest squad to date. Twelve students made up a whopping 33 entries while seven chaperones came along for the trip as well as one mascot, Siri Quarfordt.
The team competed in eight different events, with some students entered in as many as five events as they worked through an extremely long day of competition on Saturday. In the evening, the team gathered in one of its four hotel rooms to touch base and marvel at the growth that's come about this season. The names are too many to list, so shoutouts to the chaperones that donated an entire weekend of their time to supervise and judge for Bronx Prep: Ms. Melkonian, Ms. Wilson, Ms. Bryant, Ms. Rodriguez and her husband, Mr. Laboy all joined Mr. Simon and Ms. Q and are responsible for allowing the team to compete in so many events. Their committment over the weekend makes our progress possible.
The results? The team may have traded quantity for quality as only one of the thirty-three entries saw action past the preliminary rounds. It should be no surprise that that was senior and Team Manager, Chris Moncrief, a nationally-recognized speaker who reached the Semifinal round of Original Oratory, but was denied a spot in the Final Six for a second year in a row.
For the rest of the team, it's go time. The hiatus over the winter break is short and vital as the team prepares for competitions practically every weekend when school resumes. The raw elements are there: The Talent (never in question), The Coaching (now a staff of three with the addition of Ms. Sheridan Johnson), The Support (see the list of mad chaperones above), and The Pieces (have you heard about The Shipment...?). The only thing missing from this list is the one thing keeping the team from its most successful year yet: Hard Work. Focus, committment and practice, practice, practice will bring this squad to the next level. This is one blogger shooting for quality to match quantity when this expanding squad embarks on its next road trip.
Fairfax, VA - The BP Speech Team competed in the Patriot Games over the first weekend of December at the campus of George Mason University outside of Washington, D.C., fielding its biggest squad to date. Twelve students made up a whopping 33 entries while seven chaperones came along for the trip as well as one mascot, Siri Quarfordt.
The team competed in eight different events, with some students entered in as many as five events as they worked through an extremely long day of competition on Saturday. In the evening, the team gathered in one of its four hotel rooms to touch base and marvel at the growth that's come about this season. The names are too many to list, so shoutouts to the chaperones that donated an entire weekend of their time to supervise and judge for Bronx Prep: Ms. Melkonian, Ms. Wilson, Ms. Bryant, Ms. Rodriguez and her husband, Mr. Laboy all joined Mr. Simon and Ms. Q and are responsible for allowing the team to compete in so many events. Their committment over the weekend makes our progress possible.
The results? The team may have traded quantity for quality as only one of the thirty-three entries saw action past the preliminary rounds. It should be no surprise that that was senior and Team Manager, Chris Moncrief, a nationally-recognized speaker who reached the Semifinal round of Original Oratory, but was denied a spot in the Final Six for a second year in a row.
For the rest of the team, it's go time. The hiatus over the winter break is short and vital as the team prepares for competitions practically every weekend when school resumes. The raw elements are there: The Talent (never in question), The Coaching (now a staff of three with the addition of Ms. Sheridan Johnson), The Support (see the list of mad chaperones above), and The Pieces (have you heard about The Shipment...?). The only thing missing from this list is the one thing keeping the team from its most successful year yet: Hard Work. Focus, committment and practice, practice, practice will bring this squad to the next level. This is one blogger shooting for quality to match quantity when this expanding squad embarks on its next road trip.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Glory and Heartbreak in the City of Brotherly Love
BP Speech traveled to Philadelphia over the weekend of November 21-22 and saw experienced members of the team leading by example, with seniors Chris Moncrief, Tayshawn Layton and Deborah Allen-Carr all reaching the Semifinals of the nationally-competitive Villiger Invitational at St. Joseph's University.
It was a spirited squad that traipsed around the Gothic architecture of the West Philly campus with the Now-Familiar Student Congress team (Monica Lindsay, Autumwind Spear, Norberto Troncoso), the Active Upstart (Marissa Charlemagne - presenting three different pieces), and the Old Standards (Keegon Robinson, Moncrief, Alenn-Carr and Layton). Nearly every student double-entered for the tournament, competing in two different events, sometimes with two memorized pieces. It was Chris Moncrief who scored big in both his events, reaching the Quarterfinals and then the Semifinals in both Original Oratory and Oral Interpretation - putting him in the top twelve finishers in both competitions, but leaving him one round shy of Finals competitions. Meanwhile, the Duo team of Tayshawn Layton and Deborah Allen-Carr presented their interpretation of the play, Matt and Ben, portraying Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. They played to a packed audience in the Semis round, but also missed out on Finals.
The results are clear indications of the hard work and progress going on after school in the Library and Room 201, as well as an indication of the room for improvement needed to make a Finals push at the upcoming competitions.
Other non-competition related highlights for the team were a raucous evening at IHOP followed by the annual Villiger Dance Party, where the team amazed fellow competitors with mad crazy dance moves.
Huge thanks from the team to Halie Berson and John Aronson for judging, chaperoning - you made the whole trip possible.
Next up is the big, bad Patriot Games tournament all the way down in Fairfax, Virginia. Stay tuned for the full report.
It was a spirited squad that traipsed around the Gothic architecture of the West Philly campus with the Now-Familiar Student Congress team (Monica Lindsay, Autumwind Spear, Norberto Troncoso), the Active Upstart (Marissa Charlemagne - presenting three different pieces), and the Old Standards (Keegon Robinson, Moncrief, Alenn-Carr and Layton). Nearly every student double-entered for the tournament, competing in two different events, sometimes with two memorized pieces. It was Chris Moncrief who scored big in both his events, reaching the Quarterfinals and then the Semifinals in both Original Oratory and Oral Interpretation - putting him in the top twelve finishers in both competitions, but leaving him one round shy of Finals competitions. Meanwhile, the Duo team of Tayshawn Layton and Deborah Allen-Carr presented their interpretation of the play, Matt and Ben, portraying Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. They played to a packed audience in the Semis round, but also missed out on Finals.
The results are clear indications of the hard work and progress going on after school in the Library and Room 201, as well as an indication of the room for improvement needed to make a Finals push at the upcoming competitions.
Other non-competition related highlights for the team were a raucous evening at IHOP followed by the annual Villiger Dance Party, where the team amazed fellow competitors with mad crazy dance moves.
Huge thanks from the team to Halie Berson and John Aronson for judging, chaperoning - you made the whole trip possible.
Next up is the big, bad Patriot Games tournament all the way down in Fairfax, Virginia. Stay tuned for the full report.
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Another Rookie Sensation? BP Speech Expanding in All Directions
The Bronx Prep Speech Team debuted a number of fresh faces at the team's backyard tournament held at Fordham University. Jyeisha Reyes, Marcus Smith, Melanie Nyarko, Marissa Charlemagne, and Monica Lindsay all competed in their first tournament while Matt Alston and Tiffany McLarty made their 09-10 season debuts. Meanwhile, team Manager Chris Moncrief extended his breaking streak by representing the team in the finals of Original Oratory.
Preparing for a speech tournament is hard work and the coach and team officers want to shout out each new competitor for getting up early, getting dressed up, putting it on the line and performing in front of judges and competitors from all over the city. The atmosphere at the tournament was as electric as always and seems to have made an impact on the new speech team members; Marcus, Marissa and Monica have all begun traveling with the team as competition regulars and Jyeisha and Melanie have a coach cutting their own piece for them for next month!
In addition to new faces, the Bronx Prep team added an entire competition event to its repetoire as the Student Congress team also made its debut in the form of Norberto Troncoso, Autumnwind Spear and Monica Linsday. These students became representatives and senators for the day, debating legislation and making speeches. The Congress team learned a lot at Fordham and set some clear goals for themselves as this burgeoning branch of the BP Speech Team continues to grow.
And the hardware? That belonged to Chris Moncrief who surprised no one in the building by appearing in the final round of Oratory. But there's clearly still work to be done - Chris finished out of the top 5 and was recognized as a Finalist.
From humble beginnings and a small squad as recently as last year, this season's Bronx Prep team could regularly be bringing a dozen students to local competitions. If these fresh faces find success like last year's squad... the forensics students in the New York City League may have cause for concern.
Preparing for a speech tournament is hard work and the coach and team officers want to shout out each new competitor for getting up early, getting dressed up, putting it on the line and performing in front of judges and competitors from all over the city. The atmosphere at the tournament was as electric as always and seems to have made an impact on the new speech team members; Marcus, Marissa and Monica have all begun traveling with the team as competition regulars and Jyeisha and Melanie have a coach cutting their own piece for them for next month!
In addition to new faces, the Bronx Prep team added an entire competition event to its repetoire as the Student Congress team also made its debut in the form of Norberto Troncoso, Autumnwind Spear and Monica Linsday. These students became representatives and senators for the day, debating legislation and making speeches. The Congress team learned a lot at Fordham and set some clear goals for themselves as this burgeoning branch of the BP Speech Team continues to grow.
And the hardware? That belonged to Chris Moncrief who surprised no one in the building by appearing in the final round of Oratory. But there's clearly still work to be done - Chris finished out of the top 5 and was recognized as a Finalist.
From humble beginnings and a small squad as recently as last year, this season's Bronx Prep team could regularly be bringing a dozen students to local competitions. If these fresh faces find success like last year's squad... the forensics students in the New York City League may have cause for concern.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Speech Seniors Score with Strong Start
October 24th, 2009
The Bronx Prep Speech team attended its first NYCFL league tournament over the weekend and saw big success from the veterans, while the rest of the squad helped flesh out a team that was represented in nearly every main event offered for competition.
In a stark contrast to last season, in which zero seniors competed for the Bronx Prep team all year, on Saturday five seniors were entered in the tournament, which was held at Regis and Loyola High Schools on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Keegon Robinson (Varsity OI), Chris Moncrief (Original Oratory), Deborah Allen-Carr and Tayshawn Layton (Duo Interpretation) and Ingrid Villafrance all represented the class of 2010, with Mr. Moncrief and the team of Layton/Allen-Carr reaching the final round. The ladies finished tied with the second-best point total on the day, but tiebreakers put them in 5th place, while Chris finished in 2nd place - good enough to earn him a half-qualification for the State Championship tournament in April. Team Captain Keegon Robinson posted a first place finish in his third round and first-time competitor Ingrid may have been bitten by the speech bug - rumors abound that she may compete in Student Congress at an upcoming tournament.
Rounding out the team were Alethea Brown, making her 09-10 debut and showing strong potential playing four Crown Heights residents in the category of Dramatic Performance and rookie sensation Norberto Troncoso who competed in Extemporaneous Speaking - researching, memorizing and performing three seven-minute speeches, each in only a half hour!
With competitors in five different events, this is the most diverse Bronx Prep team to compete locally in several years - a good sign for a team looking to expand its presence and its numbers on the local scene.
Special thanks to Mr. Dude - Matthew Simon - for once again proving his dedication to the team by judging three rounds and to Ms. Halie Berson and Mr. John Aronson, the team's other judge and observer judge, respectively. This pair even showed up with bagels which the team reported were, "really good".
One more league tournament on November 14th, before the showdown in Philly that is the Villiger Tournament the following weekend. Also on the horizon is the Patriot Games Classic - the perenially expanding one-of-a-kind tournament at George Mason University.
Stay tuned for a report on the JV squad's intra-team competition, to be held at the school on October 28th.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
And They're Off
October 4th, 2009
The Bronx Prep Speech team kicked off the 09-10 campaign last weekend at the invitational tournament hosted by Yale University. What can be learned from a tournament so early in the year? Practice, practice, practice.
The team worked hard in the days and hours leading up to the first round, but saw strong competition from powerhouse schools from all over the country. Bronx Prep's scrappy squad managed to get it all together before the tournament, but they were up against students with polished performances - the result of months of hard work at Speech Institutes and on their own over the summer. Although the team was represented on Sunday in the form of Chris Moncrief's Oral Interpretation, the overall experience must be measured as just that - experience for several large and small tournaments to come.
An early tournament is a wild card and this year's Yale Invitational was no exception. Students were able to compete in several events at once - forcing competitors to leave one round early to trek across campus to get to another round in a different event. The campus must have looked pretty bizarre to passersby as teenagers in formal business attire criss-crossed the quadrangles of the Ivy League school. Members of the Bronx Prep team competed in one event each at Yale. The team was made up of Keegon Robinson, Chris Moncrief, Autumnwind Spear, Tayshawn Layton, and rookie sensation Norberto Tronscosco. Each competed in OI (Prose/Poetry) except Ms. Layton who performed as four different Iraqi women, competing in Dramatic Interpretation. Each student gained the valuable experience that comes with competing at a national-level tournament against quality competition for experienced judges. Senior Chris Moncrief's Quarterfinal finish is a testament to the Manager's talent and familiarity in such high-level tournaments.
The team gives mad props and a huge thank you to Mr. So for coaching, chaperoning, and joining the Bronx Prep Speech team.
What comes next? The local tournaments of the NYCFL. On October 24th and November 7th, the team will clash with students in the local New York City league at Regis High School and Fordham Prep, respectively, to see who will establish themselves as the speaker or team to beat this year. Will we see some hardware starting to fill up the BP Library? If the Yale Invitational is any indication, it will all come down to practice.
The Bronx Prep Speech team kicked off the 09-10 campaign last weekend at the invitational tournament hosted by Yale University. What can be learned from a tournament so early in the year? Practice, practice, practice.
The team worked hard in the days and hours leading up to the first round, but saw strong competition from powerhouse schools from all over the country. Bronx Prep's scrappy squad managed to get it all together before the tournament, but they were up against students with polished performances - the result of months of hard work at Speech Institutes and on their own over the summer. Although the team was represented on Sunday in the form of Chris Moncrief's Oral Interpretation, the overall experience must be measured as just that - experience for several large and small tournaments to come.
An early tournament is a wild card and this year's Yale Invitational was no exception. Students were able to compete in several events at once - forcing competitors to leave one round early to trek across campus to get to another round in a different event. The campus must have looked pretty bizarre to passersby as teenagers in formal business attire criss-crossed the quadrangles of the Ivy League school. Members of the Bronx Prep team competed in one event each at Yale. The team was made up of Keegon Robinson, Chris Moncrief, Autumnwind Spear, Tayshawn Layton, and rookie sensation Norberto Tronscosco. Each competed in OI (Prose/Poetry) except Ms. Layton who performed as four different Iraqi women, competing in Dramatic Interpretation. Each student gained the valuable experience that comes with competing at a national-level tournament against quality competition for experienced judges. Senior Chris Moncrief's Quarterfinal finish is a testament to the Manager's talent and familiarity in such high-level tournaments.
The team gives mad props and a huge thank you to Mr. So for coaching, chaperoning, and joining the Bronx Prep Speech team.
What comes next? The local tournaments of the NYCFL. On October 24th and November 7th, the team will clash with students in the local New York City league at Regis High School and Fordham Prep, respectively, to see who will establish themselves as the speaker or team to beat this year. Will we see some hardware starting to fill up the BP Library? If the Yale Invitational is any indication, it will all come down to practice.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Bronx Prep's Stars Fall on Alabama
June 20, 2009
To close out the season, top members of the Bronx Prep speech team headed out to Birmingham, Alabama to match up against the best of the best at the National Championships of the National Forensics League.
The competition was as fierce as expected, although half of the team's results were somewhat surprising.
Tiffany McLarty and Tayshawn Layton, BP's top Duo team, came into the tournament in top form, wowing coaches and competitors alike and drawing praise and acclaim from most everyone that saw them compete... everyone, that is, except several judges, whose less-than-stellar ranks kept the ladies out of the elimination rounds. With a national reputation, a crowd-pleasing introduction, and a fresh take on a familiar story, this team seemed to have all the ingredients to go deep into the tournament. But it's the rankings that matter and these results were as surprising as they were frustrating.
Meanwhile, Chris Moncrief, competing in Original Oratory, went for broke and overhauled his entire speech before the tournament. Despite what many, including this blogger, have called a "dream season", Chris gutted the speech that brought him so much hardware this year, seeking a new way to express himself cleary and genuinely in his speech on scars and healing. The gamble paid off in a big way as Chris competed through to the National Semifinals, missing the National Final Round by a single point. He finished 8th place in the United States. An incredible achievement to cap an incredible season.
The best news? All three of Bronx Prep's National Qualifiers have at least one more year of competition to go. With the experience of competing at this level under their belts, the sky is the limit for what they and their teammates can achieve in 09-10. After watching final rounds on the last day, the goal for the next season was clear: a Bronx Prep student on the stage, competing in Finals for a National Championship. Can the team reach the pinnacle of High School Forensics next year? Keep it tuned here to find out.
Until then, congratulations to the entire team for an extraordinary season. The groundwork is layed and the work begins now for a new season that will truly be something big.
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