On Oct. 24, at the second Brooklyn-Queens Catholic Forensics League tournament of the season, Xaverian High School won the tournament championship, which goes to the team with the most combined speech, debate and student congress points.

For the Clippers, this was the culmination of a year’s worth of planning and practice. With a young and inexperienced team last year, the Clippers have long targeted this year as their breakout year. Just three years ago, the team was made up of three members, its current captains and seniors Will Kay, Isaac Jean-Francois and Nick Duca. With their leadership, the team has grown to include 47 members. Despite sending 22 students to the New York State Championships last year, this Clippers team has the combination of veteran leadership and young talent to be the best the school has seen in decades.

After spending all summer working on memorizing and preparing, Xaverian competed at the prestigious Yale Invitational this September to open up the season. Senior Isaac Jean-Francois finished fourth in Original Oratory in the tournament. Isaac and the rest of the team have continued this stellar performance into the local season.

The last two tournaments have seen the Clippers come away with seven first place finishes, two sweeps of the top three places in an individual event, and two undefeated debate teams.

The students spend three days a week practicing for 2-3 hours a day and their hard work has paid off. They recognize, however, that the work is not done.

The team’s goals this year include improving upon their showing at state and national championships from last year.

“For several years now, but especially during the beginning of this year, I have been proud to coach this amazing group of young men,” said Brendan Gorman, forensics moderator. “The amount of work they have put into preparing for this season has been awe inspiring. From summer practices to the times we’ve been here until 8 p.m., they have been driven beyond what I could have expected of them. They are a rare group that recognizes their own potential and are willing to put in the work it takes to realize it. The bond they have built is so strong that they’re more like a family than a team. They recognize that the ideas they debate and the themes of their performances have the potential to affect change and they are determined to be a part of that. They are truly an extraordinary group of young men.”