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St. Luke's Debate Team Excels at Yale Invitational

St. Luke’s Varsity Debate competed in the Parliamentary category of the Yale Invitational, a national debate tournament run by the Yale Debate Association.
From Debate Coach Frank Henson:

Over the weekend, St. Luke’s Varsity Debate competed in the Parliamentary category of the Yale Invitational, a national debate tournament run by the Yale Debate Association. Coming from as far away as California and Canada, 63 teams, equaling 126 speakers, debated on Saturday for the chance to make the single elimination finals on Sunday.

The teams of Marco Volpitta ‘20 and Amelie Warneryd ‘20, Laura Mercedes ‘20 and Ruth Mercedes ’20, and sophomores Aisha Memon '21 and Moli Ma ’21 participated in as many as five one-hour debates on Saturday for resolutions as various as This House would withdraw troops from the Middle East, and This House would not provide tax exemptions to religious institutions.

The St. Luke’s team was extremely fortunate to be observed by, and receive guidance from, St. Luke’s parent and former high school champion debater Ron Gutstein, father of Peter Gutstein ’20. Mr. Gutstein was kind enough to travel up to Yale for the day to help the team.

Going 5-0 and 3-2 respectively, Mercedes/Mercedes and Volpitta/Warneryrd qualified for the finals on Sunday, only to debate each other in the first round of the 16 team single elimination. Mercedes/Mercedes advanced through to the semi-finals, where they were eliminated. Mercedes/Mercedes earned third place overall in the tournament, and Volpitta/Warneryd earned 14th place. Additionally, Amelie Warneryd won 7th place speaker, and Laura Mercedes won 8th place speaker. Volpitta/Warneryd are the reigning Connecticut Debate Association state champions.

Our next debate will be on September 29, a Greenwich location to be determined.
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St. Luke’s School is a secular (non-religious), private school in New Canaan, CT for grades 5 through 12 serving over 35 towns in Connecticut and New York. Our exceptional academics and diverse co-educational community foster students’ intellectual and ethical development and prepare them for top colleges. St. Luke’s Center for Leadership builds the commitment to serve and the confidence to lead.