Record Number of Eagles Attend National Latin Convention

Sixteen St. Edward Latin students, known to classicists around the country as "Knights of the Tiber," participated in the 2018 annual convention of the National Junior Classical League at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio the week of July 22-28. This is the largest turnout of Eagles ever for this yearly celebration of Latin & the Classics.

The Knights were accompanied by Latin coaches Daniel Cavoli & Greg Stemm.

Joining them for multiple days of games, contests, spirit rallies, workshops, & collaborative projects - along with the most aggressive event of all, an intricate buzzer contest for Latin trivia buffs known as Competitive Certamen - were more than 1,300 high school Latin scholars from nearly all 50 states & at least one Canadian province.

The Ohio Novice Certamen team, featuring incoming sophomore Tim Welch and three Cincinnati students, took eighth place overall, a feat especially commendable since Tim was one of the few players at the Novice level of Competitive Certamen with but a single year of Latin under his belt. Tim also earned fourth place in Latin Derivatives.

Rival Open Certamen teams of rising sophomores Dermot Fox and Sebastian Vanegas (plus their respective teammates from other parts of the country) placed first & second nationally. Open Certamen is a kind of intramural event, with each team made up of students from multiple states who are not representing their home state at the convention on a Competitive Certamen team.

A fourth-place win in Latin Oratory & seventh place in Dramatic Interpretation respectively were turned in by incoming sophomore Aaron Harper & graduating senior Owen Kranz, with rising junior Joey Zacharyasz placing tenth in Reading Comprehension.

Two additional highlights of the week for St. Edward Knights were visits to the podium at one of the daily General Assemblies by incoming junior Dean Cashmere, who delivered a candidate's introductory speech prior to the convention's election of student officers, & Mr. Stemm, who regaled the crowd of 1,600 plus with a tribute to his own high school Latin teacher, Jim Greenwald, on the occasion of Mr. Greenwald's fortieth National Latin Convention.

Congratulations to all 16 St. Edward Knights of the Tiber who attended this year's National Latin Convention!