Sierra Canyon Speech and Debate Proves Its Mettle

In December, three Middle School debate members virtually attended the La Reina Invitational, an online tournament drawing hundreds of debaters from across the country. In their debut events, Eli M. '28 and Nikolai B. '28 competed in Public Forum and Ava K. '29 in Lincoln-Douglas. Eli and Niko showed teamwork and savvy, winning four out of their five preliminary rounds and advancing to the elimination rounds. Their final placement among the top eight teams in their division was a strong showing as first-time partners in team debate. Meanwhile, Ava exhibited commendable resilience during the competition, and the experience gained from the tournament will undoubtedly contribute to her growth as a debater and further fuel the Team's collective pursuit of excellence.

Most recently, Samaya B. '27, one of the Upper School Debate Team's newest members, competed in her first Lincoln-Douglas Tournament in Santa Clarita. Asked what she has learned in Debate, she remarked, "Debate has made me stronger when answering questions or prompts given to us by our teachers. I can now pull out good evidence to support my points on different topics, come up with ideas for the prompt, and answer questions thoroughly, which are all techniques used when debating, as well as in my daily school activities."

Looking ahead, February promises to be an exciting month for the Speech and Debate Teams. Sierra Canyon will travel to Berkeley over the Presidents' Day weekend to attend the 2024 Cal Invitational Speech and Debate Tournament, an internationally renowned event. The Team will also participate in several local competitions to prepare for the State Qualifiers.

With each competition and milestone, the Sierra Canyon Speech and Debate Team exemplifies outstanding teamwork and a relentless pursuit of excellence.