Mavforensics

That’s a wrap on Mavforensics season 25-26! 🎉✨

The year where the team kept fitting into the same elevator! The year of incredible growth and leadership for everyone, but especially from the junior class. 🖤❤️ A year filled with laughs, learning, unforgettable experiences and amazing accomplishments with a team full of WONDERFUL humans we are so beyond proud of.

Thank you to this stellar squad. Each of you make Mavforensics a safe and special place to be and we can’t wait to do it again next year! 🥳🤘🏼

Check out the solutions packets our Mavs created this year and join us TONIGHT on Zoom for a screening of Greener Pastures, the documentary featured in Colin’s persuasive speech this year. Screening information for 05/22/26 can be found on the last slide. The forensics season may be over, but the advocacy isn’t!

We are so proud of each Mav’s speech event created this season and grateful for this platform that provides the space & inspiration to share on issues we care deeply about.

GO MAVS! 🤘🏼

Join us in wishing a Happy Birthday to THE MAK RUFFING!!! 🎉🎂 Oh my gosh the ways in which we love Mak are truly infinite.

Outside of school, work, and personal projects, Mak helps run the social media pages (except for this post of course 😉), but their role is so much more than that! Mak is a truly incredible friend, family member, and teammate. Mak brings a warm energy to Mavforensics that makes everyone feel welcomed and appreciated. And believe us, our admiration is as grand as Mak’s love for fine arts. Whether it’s gushing about art or musicals, Mak has focused on topics important to them and poured their heart into every performance they’ve given. Mak’s passion inspires everyone on the team!

There aren’t enough amazing things to say about this human and we are so grateful Mak is such a special and important part our team. Mak, we hope you have the best birthday yet and please know how much you are loved and valued!!! 🥳💜 Have a great day!

While our season may now be over, the celebrations certainly aren’t! Please join us in wishing Madelyn a happy birthday!! 🎁🎉

Madelyn has been such an amazing addition to the team’s coaching staff this season, and there are not enough words for us to describe how kind, thoughtful, and brilliant she is. She’s constantly bringing in new ideas for events, helping the team explore and navigate topics or assisting them with blocking. She’s been a wonderful addition to our social media team, designing beautiful graphics and coming up with fun posts and stories. Madelyn truly is one of the friendliest faces that you can see in the team room, or even just walking down the hall. We are all so grateful for everything you do for the team, so thank you for choosing to make UNO and MavForensics a part of your life’s journey.

Have a wonderful day today, Happy Birthday Madelyn!! 🥳

Colin placed 6th in the Nation at the 152nd IOA!!!

We are so proud of Colin for his hard work, advocacy, and dedication to this activity! Thank you to IOA 206 for an incredible tournament and for the UF Speech and Debate Team for being the best hosts. Your intentionality and thoughtfulness all weekend did not go unnoticed and was very appreciated. We have fallen in LOVE with Gainesville and doing the Gator Chomp is our new favorite thing 🧡💙

Interstate Oratory is the oldest public speaking competition on the continent - this year marking 152 years of collegiate forensics excellence. We had a wonderful weekend exploring Gainesville and enjoying every minute of IOA 2026!

Here are some highlights from our trip:

Pic 2: HARN Museum of Art 🎨🖼️

Pic 3: Kanapaha Botanical Gardens 🪴🌴

Pics 4&5: UF Softball game (featuring SDSU and future Mav Emma Arneson!) 🥎

Pic 6: Exploring beautiful Gainesville ☀️

Pic 7: Final Round Location 😍

Pic 8: Colin with his very proud coach 🤩

Pic 9: Colin featuring BABY ALLIGATOR SWIMMING BEHIND HIM 🏆🐊😳 (bottom left side of the shallow water)

What a wonderful year this team has had. So proud of each Maverick on our squad and can’t wait to celebrate back together with the full team at our end of year party this week. GO MAVS! 🤘🏼

UNO School of Communication
UNO College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media
University of Nebraska at Omaha

Colin is an Interstate Oratory SEMIFINALIST!!!!

We are so proud of Colin for representing the state of Nebraska at the 152nd IOA. Semifinal competition rounds begin in the morning! ☀️

GO MAVS 🤘🏼
UNO School of Communication
UNO College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media

Mavforensics arrived in Florida for .2026! 🧡

We are so excited to be in Gainesville for Interstate Oratory this year. Stay tuned for updates on Colin’s weekend of competition and Florida adventures. GO MAVS! 🤘🏼

We love the ASC!! 🤩🌟

The Mavs had a fantastic time this year at the Asynchronous Speech Championship. We are so thankful to this tournament for its commitment to accessible and amazing forensics competition and all the quality opportunities it provides for practice, learning, development, and memory making. Thank you so much to our friends at OATS Forensics, the SMSU Speech Team, and Outspoken Culture for another wonderful year!! ❤️🖤

One last tournament stop for the Mavs this season - Gainesville, we are ready! 🤘🏼


UNO School of Communication

AFA 2026! 🎉 The Mavs had an incredible week in Portland, Oregon for the AFA-NST. Joy was a message of the opening ceremony and certainly the theme of the week. Thank you to the .nst and .speechdebate for hosting a wonderful tournament on a stunningly beautiful campus. 🗻🌲

We saw amazing performances and a connected community (AND SEA LIONS), and we can’t wait to be back again next year!

Be on the lookout for Colin’s adventures to Interstate Oratory in a few short weeks and GO MAVS! 🤘

Mavs wrapped up the fall semester with a few more asynchronous tournaments after our last travel day to our friends at Doane for the Final Stage! 👾💜

Thank you to Doane Forensics, UW-Whitewater Forensics, OATS Forensics and Queens College Speech for hosting great tournaments!

Results below:

❄️ UW-Whitewater Winterfest Alumni Classic
Sara Micanek - Extemporaneous Speaking, 6th
Yasmin Monroy - Informative Speaking, 4th
Bri Winfield - Persuasion, 4th
Damon Sheets - Poetry, 3rd
Skyler Hogan - Poetry, 6th

✨NEAT #3
Tessa Hansen - After Dinner Speaking, 3rd

🎮 FINAL STAGE:
Tessa Hansen - After Dinner Speaking, 5th
Colin Gibbons - Communication Analysis, 1st
Sara Micanek - Extemporaneous Speaking, 5th
Sara Micanek - Prose, 3rd
Yasmin Monroy - Informative Speaking, 2nd
Bri Winfield - Persuasion, 2nd
Skyler Hogan - Poetry, 3rd
Winifred Huber - POI, 6th

We can’t wait for tournaments to begin and to see you all in 2026! 🥳🤩