On Thursday September 18th, four debaters from Lafayette College (along with their Director of Speech and Debate, Scott Placke) set out for Western Kentucky to compete in their first tournament of the year. After surviving a flight to Nashville and a short car ride to Kentucky, the debaters arrived at their hotel ready to compete and support their teammates the next day in Western Kentucky’s annual Round Robin.

Senior Ryan Monahan won the inaugural Round Robin, but this year the tournament was christened with a new name. Now the Alexis Elliot Memorial Round Robin, the tournament is a fitting memorial to one of the finest and most inspirational debaters ever.

Monahan and fellow senior Justin Horn were selected to represent Lafayette College in this elite tournament in which only two students from each school are allowed to compete. There were ten debaters entered, and together they comprised some of the best talent in the nation. Juniors Vanessa Milan and Alyssa Braver also attended the tournament to watch and help prep their teammates.

Although Monahan did not reclaim his title as tournament champion, he did manage to make it to semi-finals, an impressive feat nonetheless. In addition, he claimed the third place speaker award. He also qualified for the NFA National Tournament. Nefertiti Dukes from Western Kentucky University won the Round Robin with Truman State’s Donny Richardson finishing second.

The debate fun was just beginning. Saturday morning began Western Kentucky’s Fall Fiesta tournament. This time, all four Lafayette debaters competed. There were a total of 31 debaters entered in the open division of Lincoln Douglas Debate, and they came from schools all across the nation. The debaters competed in six preliminary rounds.

Justin Horn and Alyssa Braver both advanced into elimination rounds. Justin Horn lost in the quarter-finals and Alyssa Braver lost in semi-finals. Both debaters qualified for Nationals. The final round was a close-out between two Western Kentucky debaters, Tyler Prochazka and Nefertiti Dukes. Ryan Monahan picked up another speaker award, this time taking second place, despite not qualifying for the elimination rounds.

The next time the team will debate will be from October 4-5 in The Ocho, which will take place at our very own Lafayette College. It is sure to be an exciting and educational event!

–Alyssa Braver, VP of Debate