Zoraida Espinoza '22 Leads Pacific's Forensics Team in National Tournament
Pacific University’s Zoraida Espinoza ’22 advanced to the semifinals of the 2021 National Forensics Association National Championship Tournament, held virtually April 16-19. She finishes the season as a national semifinalist in prose.
Overall, Pacific finished 15th in the President’s Division II and 33rd overall in the tournament. Along with Espinoza, the team includes Olivia Rockwood ’21, Christiana Warner ’21, Taylor Clapp ’21, Dalton Sikes ’23, Alex Bacon ’23, and Megan Farmer ’24.
Espinoza performed “My Secret Life as the World’s Worst Professional Matchmaker,” by Karie Fugett.
Pacific’s forensics team has been competing virtually all year, due to COVID-19 restrictions. Members of the team gather on campus for competitions to maintain their close ties, but they face competitors from all over the country via Zoom and other services.
The National Championship Tournament marked the close of the 2020-2021 season. Espinoza’s showing is a feather in the cap of the forensic team, which is part of Pacific’s Media Arts Department. The team is led by faculty members Dan Broyles, director, and Jennifer Conner, assistant director, who both helped proctor the Zoom rounds for the tournament.
The team hopes to resume participation in out-of-area tournaments next year, and Espinoza has vowed to make the national finals next year, which is “more than possible,” Conner said.
Espinoza hails from Hillsboro and is a recipient of Pacific University’s Fred Scheller Endowed Scholarship, Gamma Sigma Art Wilcox/Fred Scheller Endowed Scholarship and Richard Frost Reath Endowed Scholarship.