Debate finds victory at Shawnee

Kaitlin Clark, Blue M Managing Editor

Shawnee Heights High School was the site of multiple victories for the Manhattan High debate team over the last week, with two teams placing in the top three.

On Wednesday, a group of novice, or first-year debaters, travelled to Shawnee to compete in the Shawnee Heights High School After-School Debate Tournament.

For most of the competitors, this was among the first few tournaments they have competed in.

“The first tournament, I really got down the structure,” Luke Wichmann, sophomore, said. “I went into it not knowing anything since it was my first tournament… but this time around I knew what I was doing… I handled the pressure better.”

For some competitors, this was their first time ever competing in a debate tournament.

“This was my partner’s first tournament, so we just worked together and found out who’s going to be doing what, and helped him figure out what the plan really was,” Michael Olher, freshman and third-time competitive debater said.

This tournament was generally seen as harder than others that the novices have competed in so far this year.

“It was a lot more difficult than the other ones because the novices seemed a lot more experienced than the other two tournaments that I’ve been to,” Lucas Crabtree, freshman, said.

Manhattan High, however, was ready to rise to the challenge.

“Everyone seemed a lot more experienced, so they actually knew what they were doing this time versus last time, which– it was just kind of not the greatest,” Crabtree said. “This time it seemed a lot… better than the last tournaments.”

Along with the novices competing, nine students who have more experience in debate were taken to the tournament to be judges.

“Judging made me reflect on my novice year last year, and [I] noticed the difference between my debate styles,” Will Bannister, sophomore, said. “[There is] a lot more continuity in my arguments and being able to speak fluently when reading my evidence compared to being a novice where you stumble over yourself and don’t know what you’re saying.”

Following this tournament, a second competition took place at Shawnee as well over Friday and Saturday, with multiple MHS teams placing highly.

Bannister and his partner, Caden Hickel, sophomore, took first place in the competition, while Lily Colburn, senior, and Trinity Brockman, sophomore, came in third, and Cailyn Sorton, sophomore, and Anna Poggi-Corradini, sophomore, received fourth.

“We all came together as a team,” Brockman said. “And the hard work really did pay off.”