Schools

Wilton High School Takes First Place in Debate Tourney

The varsity team of Ryan Cross and Rachael Jones earned top honors in the debate tournament held at Masuk High School on Feb. 1.

The Wilton High School Debate Team continues its successful run in Connecticut Debate Association competition with another tournament win.  

The varsity team of Ryan Cross and Rachael Jones, both seniors, earned first place in the extemporaneous debate tournament held at Masuk High School in Monroe Feb. 1.

Jones also won 1st Place Speaker overall, and Cross, WHS team co-captain, won 3rd Place Speaker.  

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The novice team of Jessica Moss and Vedika Karandikar also finished with a 3-0 record and in 6th Place overall.  

That finish qualifies as one of two required results needed for the State Championship Tournament.  

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WHS was represented by 2 varsity teams and 4 novice teams at the tournament.

The Masuk tournament topic for all debaters was “the continued use of drones for targeted killing of individuals.”  

CDA topics are purposefully broad, allowing debaters to narrow the scope as they choose and topics assigned include international as well as domestic issues.  

During a tournament, all teams are required to debate both the affirmative and negative sides of the resolution.

Jones/Cross defeated a team from Ridgefield’s Joel Barlow High School in the final round. 

Joel Barlow has a reputation for an aggressive and contentious style which can be very difficult to counter while remaining calm, but the WHS seniors kept control and dictated the direction of the debate to their advantage.  

The victory was particularly rewarding as Cross and Jones finished 2nd place to a different Joel Barlow team in a final round earlier this year.  

There are two more regular season qualifying tournaments prior to the State Championship meet, hosted by WHS in the spring. 

—Post based on a Wilton High School Debate team press release


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