While many high school sports last a singular season, one Palisade extracurricular in particular just closed a near seven-month season. The Palisade speech and debate team competed at the 2026 Western Slope National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA) Main Events National Qualifiers, which were hosted at Colorado Mesa University from Friday, March 6th, to Saturday, March 7th. This was the final tournament for the Bulldogs before select members head to Richmond, Virginia this summer for the National tournament. Many rivalry schools, including Battle Mountain High School, Eagle Valley High School, and Roaring Fork High School bring their best debaters, public addressers, and interpreters to fight for a spot at the top.
Only members who receive first place at National Qualifiers receive a bid to the National tournament, which is a difficult and rare accomplishment. However, the Bulldogs are sending at least four members to Virginia this summer. The team of juniors Evelyn Forte and Max Bourkovski qualified in Public Forum Debate (PF). Junior Gabrielle Spriggs achieved a rare accomplishment by qualifying in two different events, including International Extemporaneous Speaking (IX) and Congressional Debate (which members qualified at a separate tournament that occurred in early February). Spriggs will attend Nationals as a participant in IX, which is an impromptu speaking event that challenges competitors to create a speech in a fixed amount of time regarding international events. Sophomore Alivia Nicodemus was selected to be a member of the Western Slope World Schools debate team, which is a five-on-five debate event. Nicodemus will participate in this event with members from other schools.
The runner-ups at National Qualifiers have the opportunity to attend Nationals if the current winner vacates their spot. The alternates from PHS are junior Solomon Helms in Big Questions Debate (BQ), junior Marilee Beauregard in Dramatic Interpretation (DI), and junior Logan Waggoner in United States Extemporaneous Speaking (USX).
The final tournament of the season allows members to reflect on their growth with their teammates, which have now turned into trustworthy and valuable friendships. Bourkovski shares, “I think our team has grown a lot. We all became really close throughout the season… we all rely on each other for support… I can see that we’ve all made huge improvements.” PF is a two-versus-two debate event that requires teamwork skills and collaboration. Bourkovski and Forte’s hard work paid off at National Qualifiers, with Bourkovski stating, “PF was the major shock. We went 4-0 and beat all of the other teams…that was crazy.”
Freshmen on the team are ready to step into leadership positions and teach next-year novices the ropes. Freshman Hank Walton, a competitor in CD and Lincoln Douglas Debate (LD) shares what he has learned throughout the season and reflects upon his growth. Walton shares, “I’ve learned to be able to focus on making sure that I do the best I can, and instead of focusing my self-worth on what other judges think, just focusing in on doing the best I can do.”
Although this is the end of the season, this isn’t the end for the PHS speech and debate team. If you are interested in being a part of this team, please visit Mrs. Seremak or contact a team captain for more details regarding the 2026-2027 season. Go Bulldogs!
