Last Saturday the debate team attended the National Qualifying Tournament. Topeka High School hosted it for the Flint Hills Debate/Forensics District. This was a double elimination tournament. If the team had two losses, they would be out of the tournament. 

Sophomore John Brock and junior Gilberto Bonilla-Martinez made it to the second round. This is Brock’s first year doing debate and he loved it. Brock and Bonilla-Martinez did a lot of preparation for the tournament, since it was their last of the season.They prepared for the week and came into the tournament with everything they had. When they made it to the second day of competition they were going against Varsity-level teams. Unfortunately, due to a split decision from the judges, they did lose their fourth round.”

“We both feel very proud of ourselves, and hope to do well in forensics and debate next year,” Brock said. 

Along with them, senior Kate Page and freshman Eli Erchoff attended the qualifying tournament the day before. Kate Page expressed round one was very hectic for them. No one had evidence against the other team. Their second round opponent forfeit and they pushed out everything they had for round three. 

“My partner and I had an amazing flow and vibe going,” Page said. “It was a cool experience. There was a lot of adrenaline pumping and even though we lost we had fun and did our best.”