The Deering High School Speech and Debate Team had an outstanding showing at the annual Nutcracker Sweeps Tournament at Poland Regional High School on December 7th. The team of 13 competitors participated in various categories, including Public Forum Debate, Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Dramatic Interpretation, and Congressional Debate.

The Rams had a particularly successful night in Congressional Debate, with Junior Noah Rasheed taking 1st place and Junior Laura Callaghan securing 3rd place in the House. The Deering Delegation also achieved 1st place overall among five competing schools. In the Varsity Public Forum debate, the team of Alma Wallace and Ellis Retzer went undefeated, securing 1st place. Additionally Paisley Haskell and Anabelle Price impressed everyone by winning 3 out of 4 rounds in their first-ever debate tournament. The Ram Debaters' collective efforts earned them a commendable 3rd place as a team. 

Pictured: Wood, Rasheed, Callaghan, Pelletier, Retzer, Wallace, Caron, Yusuf, Lee, Enright, Caiazzo, Price and Haskell

The team is now gearing up for the next tournament on January 11th at Cape Elizabeth High School, with their sights set on the state tournament championship on January 25th. The Debate team is actively seeking support from volunteers to help judge these tournaments. To help us meet judge requirements, email Coach Krista Simonis at simonk@portlandschools.org