The Plano Senior/Clark Debate Tournament was held this past weekend, where competitors from various schools showcased their skills in different debate and speech events like Congress, Extemporaneous speaking, Prose, Dramatic interpretation and many more.
Debaters from various competing schools shared their personal experiences and opinions on the tournament.
“The tournament had an extremely positive aura with how well it was being managed,” said Dhruv Arun, R.C. Clark High School.
“I think the cougars were really cool,” said Heewon Kim, Flowermound High School.
Judges at the tournament were nostalgic, seeing the competitors grow. Aldean Pearson II, who has competed in multiple events during his time as a competitor, shared his thoughts on the growth he sees in the students, “Just watching the students, seeing where they are starting, and that I’ll be able to see them grow,” he said. “Hopefully they get something out of this—I certainly did.”
Mathew Rippin, another judge and former competitor, expressed his excitement about judging at the tournament, “Just getting to be back and seeing the people I got to compete with and the coaches. The speech and debate community is amazing—I miss it.”
Will Spencer, a senior at Theo High School and Lincoln-Douglas (LD) debater, thought of his favorite tournament moment, “My favorite time, easily, would be after Octos for LD [Elimination rounds composed of the top 16 debate competitors],” he said. “I found out I broke the semis, but I also got Cane’s chicken fingers. You already know how hard those go with an extra piece of Texas toast from Cane’s.”
The tournament wouldn’t have been possible without the commitment of the home team, the Plano Senior Speech and Debate team, and the Clark Speech and Debate team. Their coach, Robert Shepard, expressed pride in his students and the event they helped put together, “Thanks to the Plano Senior High Speech and Debate team, who performed amazingly well over the weekend, and made people feel welcomed, creating an event that people would want to return to.”
The Plano Senior/Clark Debate Tournament was more than just a tournament—it was an event, filled with hard work, personal victories, and reunions.