The Irving Society has won Mercersburg’s annual Irving-Marshall Week competition, narrowly edging rival Marshall Society, 1,000 to 985 total points.

Marshall’s Oscar Su ’25 (Hagerstown, MD) took first place at Declamation, Mercersburg’s 131st prize speaking contest. Irving’s William Tutt ’25 (Carolina, Puerto Rico) was second, Irving's Sophie Koroma ’26 (Hyattsville, MD) placed third, and Irving received the overall team prize with declaimers Tutt, Koroma, Crystal Chiu ’25 (Hong Kong), Lily Hubbard ’26 (Camas, WA), and Rhiannon Myhre ’25 (Annapolis, MD).

Head of School Quentin McDowell P ’25, ’27 announced the results at an all-school dance following Declamation March 6.

Su won with “Dorsia,” for which he portrayed a psychopath, describing methodical choices juxtaposed with violent impulses and actions. The piece was adapted from the novel American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis. This was Su’s second year as a declaimer. 

Tutt’s second-place win came from his comical rendition of a movie theater employee from “The Popcorn King” by Olan Rogers. This was Tutt’s third Declamation appearance. 

Koroma’s powerful delivery of “Born to Rule,” adapted from the television series Scandal, earned her the third-place prize.

The Declamation judges were asked to determine first-, second-, and third-place winners among the 10 speakers, and then make a judgment of the stronger overall team performance.

Marshall’s declaimers consisted of returners as well as some new faces. Keri-Ann Denis ’25 (Arvene, NY) came back for her third year of Declamation. Grace Chi ’25 (Palo Alto, CA) returned for her second year. Last year Chi received first place. Marshall was joined by two new faces: Renee Jin ’26 (McLean, VA) and Max Friedman ’25 (Vienna, VA). Trevi Ricks ’28 (Arlington, VA) served as Marshall’s declaimer-in-training.

For Irving, Myhre was a declaimer after serving as last year’s declaimer-in-training. Irving had new faces, including Hubbard, Koroma, and Chiu. Caroline Hobbs ’26 (Pottsville, PA) acted as Irving’s declaimer-in-training. 

Each member of the student body belongs to one of the two societies, which faced off during the week in a number of athletic and other competitions—most notably Declamation, which pits five representatives from each society in a public speaking contest where prepared monologues are delivered in formal attire for an energetic yet dignified crowd of students, the school community, and distinguished judges from outside the school community. Victories in each event during the week garner points for the winning society.

Ryan Kothari ’25 (Hagerstown, MD) was the Irving Society president, and Taimur Rehman ’25 (Sugar Land, TX) served as the Marshall Society president. De-Enda Rotz P ’25 was the Irving Society adviser, and Bethany Galey ’02 was the faculty adviser for Marshall. Matt Maurer P ’18, ’20, ’22, ’23, ’28 advised the declaimers.

The biggest challenge for the declaimers is finding the right material for a piece, Maurer said, noting that it’s also challenging to adapt or cut the piece, as needed. 

“The rest is just hard work, preparation, confidence, and execution,” Maurer said. “But they always seem to peak at the right time.”

The Declamation competition is a valuable tradition for both the participants and the audience.

“For the participants, I hope they come away proud of what they accomplished, whether they win a place or not. One of the most common comments from the judges is ‘They are all so strong!’” Maurer said. “I also hope that in addition to being proud of themselves, they’ve created some fantastic memories of the process and the event, as well as meaningful relationships with the society officers and their fellow declaimers from both societies.”

The competition also provides the audience with a great opportunity to see what’s possible on stage. 

“In addition to walking away deeply moved, with a powerful message, and/or after having a hilariously good time, I hope students feel inspired to start looking for a piece of their own that gives them the best chance of making the team when they audition next year,” Maurer said.

Entering Declamation, the point total stood at 685 for Marshall and 600 for Irving, with 700 points available at the speaking contest.

Marshall was named the winner last year, breaking Irving’s two-year winning streak. In 2022’s competition, Irving broke Marshall’s six-year winning run. Marshall had tied Irving’s six-year winning streak from 1911-1916. The loss in 2022 ended Marshall’s hope of becoming the first society to reach a seven-year winning streak in competition history. The annual competition has been held every year except one since the school was founded in 1893. The 1936 competition was canceled because of a flu epidemic.

Declamation Prizes

Su (Marshall), first place: John K. Berger Prize, John S. Derr Prize, and Scoblionko Declamation Cup (given by David Scoblionko ’66 and Eric Scoblionko ’72)

Tutt (Irving), second place: J. Harry Wood Prize, John S. Derr Prize

Koroma (Irving), third place: Dorothy Baker Prize, John S. Derr Prize

Irving team: John K. and Mary Jane Berger Prize