Grove City College Debate Team Ends Successful Season

GROVE CITY, Pa. — The Grove City College debate team ended its 2016-2017 season by winning an overall national championship as well as several individual ones.

The team secured a national championship at the National Christian College Forensic Invitational in Phoenix, at Grand Canyon University, where they competed against the nation’s top Christian schools.

“Grove City debate’s motto is to ‘speak better and know more,’” said head coach Dr. Jason R. Edwards, a professor of history and humanities at Grove City College in a release. “Our success this year and in the past speaks to the effectiveness of the formula. But, frankly, I am more pleased by the fact that the team is a true community that fosters development in all aspects of life, not just argumentation. Grove City College’s commitment is to developing men and women dedicated to truth and capable of defending it.”

Grove City College competed in both National Parliamentary Debate Assosiation (NPDA) and International Public Debate Association (IPDA) debates. The team won the overall debate prize in Division II.

Freshman Christopher Ostertag was named the top IPDA speaker in the novice division and sophomore Carolyn Hartwick was named the top IPDA speaker in junior varsity.

Edwards pointed out that the leadership of captains Colin Freyvogel and Zack Voell was instrumental in guiding the team toward success. “They did a simply outstanding job training the team,” he said in a release. “The level of success enjoyed, particularly by the novices, demonstrates Zack’s and Colin’s hard work and promises a foundation has been laid that will continue to pay dividends for the College’s debaters into the future.”

Dr. Andrew Harvey, professor of English, and Dr. Michael Coulter, professor of political science, served as assistant coaches throughout the year, traveling with and coaching the team.

Pictured: Grove City College debate team on the campus of Grand Canyon University; front row: Maverick Dickson, Christopher Ostertag, Alisa Randall, Megan Moran, Isaac Kim; back row: Carolyn Hartwick, Nicholas Robison, Colin Freyvogel, Micah Quigley, Noah Gould and Zack Voell.

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