Debaters advance in Michigan, Kentucky tournaments

Coach Tim Mahoney’s debaters closed out the 2022 calendar year by marking significant wins in two online debate tournaments over the weekend of Dec. 2. 

 

In the Michigan State University tournament, Deven Pietrzak ’25 and John Stephen Hohmann ’25 won four of five preliminary debates — a quarterfinals decision over Nashville Independent School in Tennessee before losing in the semifinals on Sunday to a team from Woodward Academy in Georgia. 
 

On Dec. 3 and 4, Sid Bidare ’24 and Anish Guddati ’24 won five of six debates at a tournament hosted by the University of Kentucky. On the morning of Dec. 4, they started the octafinals with a 3-0 victory over Thomas Jefferson High School in Virginia, followed by a 3-0 victory over Kickapoo High School in Missouri, before losing a 2-1 decision to New Trier High School of Illinois in the semifinals. 
 

These tournaments this week conclude the team’s competitions for the 2022 calendar year, but debaters will continue their strong competitive work in 2023, travelling to compete against top teams in Nashville for the Montgomery Bell Academy Tournament. Several other students will compete in an online tournament hosted by Gonzaga University. Both tournaments will start on Jan. 6.