Great Bend High School’s Panther Debate Team had a whirlwind of activity, showcasing their skills across multiple events over the last two weeks, coach Kim Heath reports.
On Saturday, Sept. 28, they faced stiff competition at the large Halstead Debate Invitational. In the novice division, the team of senior Steven Guillory and freshman Caleb Tudor stood out, securing three wins and only one loss, earning them 7th place medals.
Other teams also represented the Panthers at Halstead, including senior Reese King and sophomore Kyra Lewis, who unfortunately failed to win a round. Two pairs of juniors and sophomores competed. Both Quinton Heath and Kaitlyn Froetschner, and Zachary Hart and Hunter McClanahan, only won one round. A notable performance came from the sister duo of senior Analeah and junior Jordan Ochs, who showed improvement and finished with a 50/50 record.
Despite the final scores, coach Heath expressed pride in the team’s resilience and growth.
“The team is not discouraged and will take the lessons of the day to move forward,” she said. “Debate can feel unfair at times – judges may misunderstand, and opponents may twist arguments, but through it all we can learn from each other and the experience.”
She also highlighted the leadership and camaraderie among the debaters. “When talking to my students after our losses on Saturday, I heard about the support for their teammates, how much they were learning and how they were continuing to apply the principles of leadership we have been focusing on.”
Philosophy Day and Novice Night
On Wednesday, Oct. 3, the debate team attended the Fort Hays State University Philosophy Day, an all-day workshop exploring the limits of intellectual property, tying into this year’s debate topic. The event brought together high school students from various schools to delve into the issue from multiple perspectives, expanding the team’s understanding of the subject in a non-competitive exchange of ideas.
The following day, Oct. 4, the Panther varsity debaters partnered with other area schools to host an exciting Novice Night at Great Bend. With eight schools participating, the Panther novices delivered stellar performances, Heath said. Steven Guillory and Diana Stoddard earned silver medals, while freshmen Ella Nokes and Sydney Bailey took home the bronze, with both teams finishing the night undefeated. In addition, Drew Oelger and Majestic Maher also competed, finishing with a record of one win and two losses. Thanks to these combined efforts, the Panthers took home the championship Sweepstakes trophy
Hoisington
To cap off the week, senior debaters Darcy Feist and Reese King dominated the Open division at the Hoisington Debate Tournament on Saturday, Oct. 5, winning 1st place.
This weekend, on Oct. 12, the Great Bend debaters will be headed back east to compete at Abilene High School.
