Persuasive Panthers

For many people, public speaking is one of the most dreaded activities they have to participate in during their daily life. For South’s debate team, this is a competitive pastime on most weekends during the school year. 

Earlier this semester, the debate team hosted their annual tournament for the 20th year in a row. Regarding the success of the recent Frat Cat competition, ELA teacher and debate coach Jennifer Holden said, “We set a high standard for ourselves, met that standard, and received a lot of positive feedback. The kids and parents always rally and we couldn’t do this without them.”

With the success of the host tournament and the semester coming to a close, dedicated debaters are getting ready for extracurricular competitions in second semester as well. Holden also said, “We’re in a position where we’ve got lots of returning [national] qualifiers for this season. We’ve got a lot of younger talent as well, so we hope to see them all the way through.” 

One such returning competitor is Tyler Unrath, senior. Unrath is the team president, and for good reason; he previously qualified for the 2018 national tournament and consistently takes home trophies after nearly tournament he attends. On the subject of his odds in returning to debating in the 2020 NSDA national tournament, Unrath said, ‘I don’t like to think too far ahead, but I certainly hope to return this year. I’m pleased with how the season has gone thus far and I think I’m well-positioned to qualify again.”

One of the things that South’s debaters won’t argue about is the solid state of their team. Varsity and novice members share an optimistic outlook for what second semester may bring. Stay tuned for more after winter break.