Hays High School Debate kicks off the competition season with a highly successful swing tournament (2 day tournament) held by LaVernia/East Central, at LaVarnia High School. The conclusion of the two days revealed the hard work of our school’s Debate team as students came back home with trophies in hand as well as the reward of Debate 1 students competing for the first time ever.
The East Central portion of the tournament was held on the 8th, a Friday. Taking the day from school, ten students loaded two minivans and headed to LaVernia High School. Through the course of the day the team worked hard competing, shedding the dust collected over the summer and re-living all the nervousness of the first tournament of the season. Many of the ten Extemporaneous speakers who competed advanced to the semifinals round, but it was juniors, Jackson Juel and Judah Padilla who made it to the final round.
“I feel great. This is the first tournament of the year and I’m already having success and it feels good.”
-Judah Padilla, Junior
Jackson brought home the 6th place trophy for domestic Extemp and Judah brought home the 5th place trophy for foreign Extemp. The first minivan left early in the afternoon in preparation for the next day’s competition, the second left much later and more fatigued, but heads held high with two trophies in hand.
Saturday was another early morning for our Debate team as those who competed on Friday groggily dragged themselves to the school and those competing for the first time this season nervously arrived on the bus. It was a long day for Hays Debate with almost the entire team there from before dusk to well after dawn.
“I was too tired to be tired”
-Miguel Gonzalez, Junior
“I love the LaVernia tournament. I could never forget the LaVernia tournament. So many of the people you see every tournament throughout the year you see for the 1st at the LaVarnia tournament [Hays’ first tournament of the year.].”
-Aaron Chaney, Junior
Competing for the first time ever, Debate 1 students were able to showcase all that they had been learning in class, at practices, and at after school speech writing sessions in the Congressional Debate preliminary rounds.
“I really liked going because I feel like I learned so much from just one congress session” -Lailani Lugo, Freshman
“I’m proud of them [the debate 1 students]… they fought against stage fright, they were willing to use one of my speeches which was specifically written for me because they were only told to prep 6 of the 18 [speeches used at the tournament]… their ability to go up there and give that speech even if they weren’t too well versed in the topic, it shows a lot of what they’ve learned in their classes and during practice and especially what they’ve learned during practice it really shows during the round”
-Mason Decarr, Junior
The Debate 1 students all were able to give at least one of their speeches, an incredible feat for the first competition.
As for the varsity competitors in novice Lincoln Douglas Debate, Matthew Limas received 2nd place at his first competition ever. In foreign Extemporaneous speaking, senior Dorothy Adams took 4th place in finals. And, while thrown in as substitutions, in Congressional Debate Dorothy Adams and Jackson Juel went all the way to finals.
“Well this [finaling in congress] was unexpected.”
-Jackson Juel, Junior
“I’m very happy to have started the season strong, and I think the whole team is stronger this year than we have been in a while. “
-Dorothy Adams, Senior
Dorothy received 13th place and Jackson received 11th. The Saturday East Central tournament concluded late, with the team smiling out to a camera snapping a photo of the team in front of the LaVernia sign, marking the first tournament to another promising year for our Hays High School Debate team.
