After taking first place at Baldwin High School and second place at Lansing High School, the debate team journeyed to its next meet at Spring Hill High School on Saturday, Nov. 12.

 While the entire team failed to secure first or second place as they had previously done, the novice team of sophomores Morgan Murray and Jasmine Hitt went 4-1, the best performance of the day for any individual team.

 “I’m pretty satisfied because it was our first debate,” Murray said.

Debate coach Jeanette Hardesty believes that the team’s weakness in this meet came from its affirmative rounds.

“We need to have strong affirmative cases to win our affirmative rounds,” Hardesty said. “Negative we’re doing pretty good on.”

 Despite this, Hardesty also saw strengths from the debaters that she hopes will remain throughout the rest of the season.

“We have done well in research and giving opinions and must continue to get for state,” she said.

 Murray agrees.

 “[We need to keep] being confident, keeping our cool and knowing our stock issues backwards and forwards,” Murray said. “Considering I hyperventilated the first time I debated in class, it was a pretty good achievement since I got over my stage fright.”