At most college forensics/debate tournaments, winners go home with plaques or trophies. But at Cameron University’s annual Christmas Classic, competitors leave with Nutcrackers – bright, whimsical, and in every size and style imaginable. Sterling College has been attending this three-day December tradition for 20 consecutive years, and this year the team returned to Kansas with 23 more Nutcrackers to add to a collection that now numbers well over 200. Even more exciting, Sterling captured first place in Team Sweepstakes, marking the college’s first forensics sweeps championship in at least four years.
The Christmas Classic, held on the first full weekend of December, draws some of the top programs in the region, including TCU, West Texas A&M, Texas Tech, the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City University, the University of Central Arkansas, and others. Sterling’s long-time coach, Ken Troyer, said the victory was especially meaningful given the strength of the field. “We’ve attended the Christmas Classic for two decades straight,” he said. “To come away with first in team sweeps – at this tournament – is a huge moment for our students. It’s been a while since we’ve done that on the forensics side.”
Sterling’s strong finish was fueled by standout performances across multiple events. Davi Brooks won the tournament championship in Extemporaneous Speaking. Brennan Blake earned the tournament title in Prose, placed third in Dramatic Interpretation, and qualified for the National Tournament. Freshman Cristian Vargiu emerged as one of the team’s most versatile competitors, winning Editorial Impromptu, placing second in After Dinner Speaking, fifth in Dramatic Interpretation, and fourth in Program Oral Interpretation. His efforts earned him third place in Overall Individual Sweepstakes as well as top novice honors in both Editorial Impromptu and After Dinner Speaking. Bailey Brewer added to the team’s medal haul with a second-place finish in Dramatic Interpretation.
Vargiu’s story stands out not only because of his results, but because of how recently he discovered the world of collegiate forensics. The freshman from Enfield, North London, came to Sterling to play soccer. Debate and public speaking were not part of his original plan. “I was taking Troyer’s public speaking class, and he said I was a confident speaker,” Vargiu said. “He offered me the chance to give debate a try. I did a few practice rounds, realized I was naturally quite good at it, and went to the Tulsa tournament. I really enjoyed it.” Watching other students compete in forensics events at that tournament sparked his curiosity, and he soon began entering more events.
Because he is highly competitive—“any disagreement in my house was always somewhat of a debate,” he laughed—Vargiu decided early on that he wanted to take on every challenge possible. He entered what is known as Pentathlon, an individual sweepstakes award requiring competitors to participate in five separate events: debate, at least one interpretation event, at least one platform event, and at least one limited-prep event. “I saw people winning awards for Pentathlon at my first tournament,” he said. “I decided if I’m going to compete, I might as well go all the way and compete for everything.” Troyer noted that while Sterling has had Pentathlon students in years past, it has been at least four years since the program fielded one. “Cristian jumped into every challenge possible—and excelled,” he said.
For Vargiu, debate remains his favorite event. “I like going head-to-head and having to prove everything I say because the other person is going to call me out on it. Thinking on my feet gives me adrenaline.” His greatest challenge, he said, was Dramatic Interpretation. “Trying to take an hour-long script and cut it into ten minutes while keeping the story clear—that was difficult.”
What surprised him most about joining the team was learning he was good at something outside of athletics. “Sports have always been my strongest suit, so it was refreshing to be good at something in a different area,” he said. He also had no idea how popular forensics was in the United States. “We don’t have anything like this in England.”
Originally recruited to Sterling for soccer, Vargiu is studying sports management but is now seriously considering a switch to law. His goals for the future are ambitious. He hopes to win the national championship in the novice division for debate, move into junior varsity, then varsity, and eventually compete for a national title there as well. “If you’re good at something, you should want all the success—and then more after that.”
With strong performances from returning competitors and a breakout season from a driven freshman, Sterling College’s forensics program is heading into the rest of the year with momentum. “This team is hungry, talented, and fearless,” Troyer said. “Bringing home 23 Nutcrackers is great—but watching our students take risks, grow, and achieve at this level is the real reward.”
And with the Nutcracker collection now delightfully overflowing, one thing seems certain: Sterling won’t mind making room for even more.
