Sandhu, Clemetson Lead LD Debate; Lopiccolo & Wilson, Prevedouros & Zhang Final in PF

Sandhu, Clemetson Lead LD Debate; Lopiccolo & Wilson, Prevedouros & Zhang Final in PF
John Sloyan, Debate Coach


Greetings, Debate Fans!

It has been an extremely successful winter for Scorpion debaters. Twenty students competed at Carson High in December and at Damonte Ranch in January. At those events, we earned over 30 round wins in both LD and PF, securing the highest win percentage in the league. Wow! Leading the way for the Scorpions were:

Nanki Sandhu '25: After winning a tournament in Novice division on LD in the fall, this past weekend Nanki finished as runner-up in the senior division. Adding to this impressive result was her first Top Speaker award. Nanki is making waves in the Sagebrush District. Great job, Nanki!

Kate Clemetson '25: Kate has had a breakthrough year as she has broken into finals in three consecutive tournaments -- no small feat! She has been Top Speaker this year as well. Her most recent 3rd place finish at Damonte was impressive as she finished as second speaker overall in the event. Well done, Kate!

Joss Wilson '24 and Scarlett Lopiccolo '25 were a powerhouse PF team at the Carson tournament. They went 4-0 in the prelims, won the semifinals, and it took a split ballot to beat them in the finals. This was a great team effort and these two complemented each other perfectly. Joss & Scarlett have a great future in PF and will be a team to reckon with this spring. Great work!

Andrew Zhang '26 and Endie Prevedouros '26 shocked the Sagebrush League by coming out of nowhere at the Carson tournament and making their way to the finals in Novice PF. Andrew led the way with 110 speaker points, which is a huge improvement over his earlier debates. This team's runner-up finish capped off a remarkable run and shows the potential these two have. Excellent work!

Our final "open" debate will be on Saturday, February 11, at Spanish Springs High School. My hope is to have a large contingent of Scorpions at this one.

The District tournament is March 9-11 at Reno High. This is the premiere event of the debate year as the top finishers earn a berth to Nationals. Spots are limited for this tournament, so priority is given to our debaters with the best combination of experience and success.