The Portsmouth and Oyster River debate teams excelled at a recent Massachusetts tournament, showcasing their skills and teamwork.
Portsmouth: On Saturday, January 11, a group of 29 students from Portsmouth and Oyster River High Schools hopped on a bus early in the morning. They were headed to Newton-South High School for the Winter Festival Speech and Debate Tournament.
These two schools were the only representatives from New Hampshire, joining 34 other high schools in the Public Forum Debate. There were 200 students competing in pairs, tackling the resolution about Somaliland’s independence. The teams had to be ready to argue both sides, which kept things interesting. One judge, Steven Borne, joked about how much he learned about Somaliland during the event.
This tournament was a big deal for the teams, as they usually focus on U.S. issues. This time, they dove into African topics, discussing things like terrorism and sovereignty. Some students found it challenging, but freshman Kirsten Dressler thought it was a great topic with fresh arguments. Co-captain Ian Franas emphasized how debate helps young people think critically and engage in important conversations.
Two teams from Portsmouth and one from Oyster River made it to the fifth round. Ian Franas and Owen Coffey, along with Isobel Horwitz and Charlie Anderson from Portsmouth, and Shreya Joglekar and Stella Pilet-Shore from Oyster River all did well. In the novice league, Freya Doshi and Kirsten Dressler from Portsmouth reached the semifinals, finishing 3rd out of 49 teams. Plus, Norah Blakey earned 9th place in novice speaker awards among 98 debaters.
Portsmouth is really proud of its debate teams. Co-captain Charlie Anderson shared his pride in how well they tackled tough topics. There’s one more tournament before the top teams head to Harvard for an international debate competition.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Portsmouth and Oyster River high school debate teams compete in Mass.
