Grove City College’s Debate Team began its 2018-19 season on a strong note with two successful competitions in the past month.
The Debate Team kicked off its season on Sept. 22 at the Forensic 500 debate in Indianapolis, Ind. Two teams of students advanced to quarterfinals in the competition, with team captains Christopher Ostertag ‘20 and Carolyn Hartwick ’19 paired against Adam Densmore ‘21 and Stefanie Klaves ’21. Since Grove City College teams don’t debate against each other, coaches decided to advance Klaves and Densmore, who had a higher seed, to the semifinals in the tournament and they achieved a third-place victory in the Open division.
Klaves also picked up a first-place speaker award. Densmore took second place, Ostertag third and Hartwick fifth.
On Oct. 6, the team competed at Walters State Community College in Morristown, Tenn. The group performed exceptionally, with Rebecca Powell ’20 and Melissa Pietruski ’21 competing undefeated in the preliminary rounds and ultimately securing a fourth-place victory in the Open division. Powell also received a third-place speaker award, with Susannah Barnes ’21 securing fifth. Freshman newcomers Anna Bigham ’22 and Reese Overholt ’22 obtained a fourth-place spot overall in the Novice division, receiving Novice speaker awards for third and eighth-place respectively.
It was the team’s first appearance at the Walters State tournament and they made an impression, according to Head Coach Dr. Jason R. Edwards, professor of History.
“I was constantly stopped, thanked, and commended not just for the students’ skill but their attitude, demeanor and character. It was very gratifying to experience Grove City College’s reputation from colleagues across the South,” Edwards said.