EAST LANSING, Mich. — Michigan State University’s Debate Team arrived at the tournament season’s opener at Georgia State University prepared to engage in heated arguments on engaging the Middle East. 

MSU took five two-person teams to the tournament season opener Sept. 21 at Georgia State University in Atlanta. Traditionally considered one of the major tournaments of the debate season, GSU welcomed 122 teams in its open competition division from more than 40 universities across the country. 

After eight preliminary debates, all five of MSU’s two-person teams had won more than half their debates, making MSU the only program to bring more than two teams and have them all leave with a winning record. These wins included victories over some of the most prestigious programs in the country, including Harvard University, Wake Forest University, Northwestern University, the University of Michigan, Emory University and the University of Kansas. 

MSU’s five two-person teams at the tournament were: 

• Garrett Abelkop, of Alpharetta, Ga., a junior international relations major, and Carly Wunderlich, of Brookfield, Wis., a sophomore political theory major.
• Gus Eyzaguirre, of Layton, Utah, a sophomore international relations major, and Eric Lanning, of Spring, Texas, a sophomore and first-year no-major student in the James Madison College.
• Debbie Lai, of Troy, a senior international relations major, and Athena Murray, of Dorr, a senior philosophy major.
• Jeremy Hammond, of Cadillac, a senior international relations major, and Abby Schirmer, of Fairview Heights, Ill., a senior international relations major.
• Sam Shore, of Dallas, Texas, a sophomore international relations major, and Ben Mehling, of Alpharetta, Ga., a freshman and first-year no-major student in the James Madison College. 

Four of the five teams also qualified for elimination rounds, including Eyzaguirre and Lanning, who continued their winning streak with a win over the University of North Texas in the “octofinals.” It took last year’s national champions from Emory University to bring their run to a close in the quarterfinals. 

“This bodes well for the future. Having two young debaters enjoy such success against their older competitors, including seniors, shows they can handle difficult situations well,” said Will Repko, MSU head debate coach. “Our squad as a whole was really quite impressive. Having all five teams finish among the top 50 competitors speaks to the depth of talent on our squad and our level of preparation. We’re very happy with this result.”

This year's topic is “Resolved: that the United States Federal Government should increase its constructive engagement with the government of one or more of: Afghanistan, Iran, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, and Syria, and it should include offering them a security guarantee(s) and/or a substantial increase in foreign assistance.” 

Upcoming tournament venues for the MSU debaters include the University of Kentucky, Wayne State University, Harvard University and Wake Forest University. 

For more information on MSU’s debate program, visit www.debate.msu.edu. 

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