The UCA Debate Team started the spring season of the 2009 – 2010 competition year by placing fourth at the recent Tri-State Championship tournament and placed first among Arkansas schools winning the Arkansas State Championship.
The team was led by overall Novice Division Champion and Arkansas Novice Champion Fadi Barakat and the top-ranked Arkansas Team Debate duo of Clermon Acklin and Payton Christenberry. Acklin also earned points for the team by placing as the top Arkansas speaker in Team Debate competition.
Also scoring points and pacing UCA in overall sweeps totals were varsity quarterfinalists Whitney Bailey and Ashley Hale and novice semifinalist Lynzie Johnson. Hale advanced as the 9th seed with a 4 – 2 record before losing in quarterfinals and Bailey also advanced to quarterfinals before losing in her match-up. Bailey added to overall team totals by also being recognized as the 5th overall speaker in the varsity division and the top Arkansas varsity speaker in style points.
Novice competitors Barakat, Johnson and Christenberry scored big for UCA by posting 6 – 0, 5 – 1 and 4 – 2 records respectively. Johnson advanced on a coaches decision over teammate Christenberry in the octofinals and then went on to win her quarterfinal round before also losing on a coaches decision to eventual novice champion and teammate Barakat in the semifinals. The 5 -1 record and 4th seed performance of Johnson came in only her second tournament competition.
Professional Division debater and co-coach Mark Lowery also earned points for the team. Lowery won first place in the division by dispatching higher seeded competitors in the quarterfinal, semifinal and final rounds.
The UCA debate team is coached by Anthony McMullen, an adjunct instructor in the College of Business and Lowery, a Department of Speech and Public Relations adjunct instructor. The debate team is an approved university activity of the Department of Speech and Public Relations.
The UCA Debate squad will be hosting the IPDA National Tournament at UCA the weekend of March 26 – 28 as well as the UCA “End of Hi-BEAR-Nation” Invitational Tournament the weekend of March 12 – 14. Anyone interested in joining the squad as a competitor for the rest of the season or volunteering to participate as a lay judge at either of the two tournaments should contact Lowery at mlowery@uca.edu or McMullen at amcmullen@uca.edu.