Brookline victorious at first 2020 virtual tournaments

Amidst the backdrop of a rainy December day, the Brookline High Speech and Debate Team proved itself to be a true juggernaut of Massachusetts’s Debate League once again. With 16 total debaters (6 of whom competed for the first time), the self-taught Brookline team managed to pull off an astounding victory. Over the course of the seven-hour “First Frost '' tournament, each debater went through five different matches, concluding the day at 4’ o'clock. The Lincoln-Douglas style of debate provides the opportunity for the debater to argue for both sides of the given topic throughout the course of the day in a one-on-one structured argument with a different opponent from another high school each round. The Brookline team sent 3 debaters to the Varsity division as well as 13 debaters to the Novice division. In the novice division, only three debaters went undefeated and all were from Brookline with Yuval Levy, Zoe Raybould, and Jacquovia Higgs taking first, second and third place respectively. One debater went undefeated in the Varsity division - none other than the president of Brookline Debate herself, Charlotte Stokes. Charlotte also ranked third best speaker in the Varsity division and Romas Moore was ranked the best Varsity speaker. In addition to the aforementioned team members, Rohan Sekhar, Addy Anyaosah, Elliot Stolyarov, and Tina Li came in the top 10 within the novice division. When tallied up, 7 out of ten of the top novices were from Brookline (including the only three undefeated debaters), two out of the top three speakers were from Brookline, and the winner of the Variety bracket a Brookline debater. This is an extraordinary feat considering that The Brookline High Speech and Debate Team is entirely self-taught. Other debate teams, such as Lexington's, are the recipients of debate programs with tens of thousands of dollars of funding yet they were still bested by the zoom-instructed BHS team. After the big win, the morale of the team is high and its prospects looking brighter than ever before. Charlotte Stokes, the winner of the Varsity division and president of the club commented, “I am so proud and excited for the whole team! We started this year with four active competitors and no adult coach, and we have grown into a twenty-person team that has won both of the tournaments we have attended this year. We are making a name for ourselves as formidable and talented opponents and I see a State's win and possibly a Nationals qualification in the near future!”. Romas Moore, winner of top Varsity speaker and associate debater added, “I am elated that we have such a great team this year! I think we vindicate the fact that a group of determined, self-motivated, hardworking, and intelligent students can give any other debate program a run for its money. I can't wait to see what the rest of the year brings and couldn't imagine a better group of colleagues to debate with.” With a record that speaks for itself, a large and determined team, and many more tournaments fast approaching, there's no telling how far Brookline High Speech and Debate will go.