The Debate Club attended the Clash of the Titans Invitational Tournament hosted by Cosby High School on Fri., Jan. 17, and Sat., Jan. 18. This was the first two day tournament the club has attended. “I didn’t mind having to go for two days,” Cormac Hogan, 10, said. “Obviously it was tiring but I had a lot of fun with my teammate. Technically you can leave early if you don’t move on to elimination rounds, but a lot of people stay which almost defeats the purpose. Also, it’s not like we finished up any earlier than usual Saturday afternoon.”

Midlo had a total of 12 participants in this tournament, with four students placing within the top three of their category. Josh Reynolds, 10,  and Kaden O’Donnell, 10, won 1st for Novice Public Forum, while Lillie Essig, 10, and Emma Springvloed, 10, won 2nd for Varsity Public Forum. When asked about tournament preparation O’Donnell stated, “We kind of waited till the last minute to prepare for this tournament, but we got help from Emma and Lillie so that was great. I think our case was good, we just needed some assistance with forming rebuttals.” This was O’Donnell and Reynolds’ first tournament. “We were so excited when they announced we had won 1st place,” Reynolds said. “I think our whole team was screaming and jumping up and down. It was our first tournament so that’s even better.”

Midlo also placed 2nd in the sweepstakes. Unfortunately, there was an unbreakable tie between another school, and they only had one trophy to give to the winner. The hosts decided to have one captain from both schools thumb war to see who would take home the trophy. Club sponsor, Jaryd Engberg, triumphantly beat the other captain, earning the trophy for Midlo.

Overall, the Debate Club had an exceptionally exciting tournament, and they are excited for future victories.