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The Belmont Abbey Debate Team participated in the 2022 North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities Ethics Bowl last weekend, evaluating ethics in democracy and citizenship. The event hosted three rounds in an online format, blending policy evaluation and political philosophy. Our team of Blake Traylor, Carter Keller, and Paloma Shrauder won the final two rounds.

In round one, Belmont Abbey discussed the financing of political campaigns with Mars Hill, debating corporate free speech and popular sovereignty. The second round with Campbell University emphasized voting legislation and structures, with significant debate surrounding the ethics and pragmatism of federalist systems. Finally, the third round with Queens University of Charlotte challenged students to consider the Supreme Court, both as an independent institution and an interconnected branch of government.

Although the event was hosted in a virtual format again this year, students had the opportunity to receive feedback from professionals in the community ranging from elected officials to corporate representatives. The event looks forward to returning to an in-person format in Raleigh next year.

Our next tournament will be Bowling Green State University on February 26; this will be a practice tournament for our first-year students. Following Bowling Green, the full team will be invited to compete at the University of Arkansas tournament March 4-6.

The Belmont Abbey Debate Team competed at the 2022 Southern Forensics Championship. The competition welcomed 34 schools from 12 states, with 136 total debaters in IPDA. Four Belmont Abbey students debated a wide variety of topics concerning societal values, policy proposals, and evaluations of policy. At the end of the weekend, Isabella Barrett finished second overall in the final round, while Blake Traylor and Carter Keller were ranked in the top 10 for speaking awards in their divisions.

In novice, Isabella Barrett and Carter Keller each earned four of six preliminary ballots to advance to the octofinals. Both debaters won their octofinal round on 2-1 decisions to qualify for quarterfinals. Carter concluded the tournament as a quarterfinalist in a round against the University of Florida. He was also honored in the top 10 for cumulative speaking points. Isabella continued to win both her quarterfinal and semifinal debates, earning her a place in the final round. Isabella concluded in second place, with Mississippi State University winning the division overall. Jason Tronetti also attended his first IPDA tournament, earning nearly 80% of the total available speaking points and gaining experience with several debate topics.

In varsity, Blake Traylor concluded the tournament after six preliminary rounds. Blake earned approximately 92% of possible speaking points, including three rounds with either a perfect speaking score out of 40 or one point below. He was honored as a top 10 speaker for the tournament.

Our next competition is the 2022 North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities Ethics Bowl on February 11.