Hilo Students Take First Place in State Forensic Championships

Hilo High School Sophomores Emma Laliberte and Bryn Wilcox took first place at the Hawai‘i State Forensic Championships. Courtesy photo.

Hilo High School Sophomores Emma Laliberte and Bryn Wilcox took first place at the Hawai‘i State Forensic Championships held last Saturday, April 8, 2017, on O‘ahu.

“I can’t believe we’re champions!” said Laliberte.

“We worked hard and it paid off,” said Wilcox.

After judges announced their win the team received a standing ovation.

Hilo High School was the only public high school from the Neighbor Islands to attend the event held at Kamehameha and Punahou Schools on O‘ahu.

On the flight home, passengers cheered when the Hawaiian Airline pilot announced their victory on the loudspeaker.

Debate Coach Greg Laliberte, Emma’s father, sees the win as an opportunity to attract more students to the debate club at Hilo High.

“We have a lot of talent at Hilo High,” he said. “We are going to build on this momentum.”

Organized by the Hawaii Speech League, this year’s championship tournament hosted 18 schools competing in 16 speech and debate events over a three-day period.

Interested students, parents, and teachers are encouraged to contact Coach Greg at Hilospeechanddebate@gmail.com.