Tom Pacheco ’14 uses his award-winning debate skills to help others.
UMW Debate Wins National Championship
University of Mary Washington Debate Team seniors Colin McElhinny and Thomas Pacheco talked their way to the top on March 16 when they won the American Debate Association National Championship at Liberty University. Pacheco received The Julia Burke Award for Character and Excellence in American Debate Association Policy Debate.
“UMW Debate had a great weekend – winning the championship and the Burke Award speaks volumes about the quality of our squad effort,” said Judd D. Kimball, assistant debate coach at UMW. “We are very pleased to bring home a national championship in debate to UMW.”
McElhinny and Pacheco finished as the second seed after the preliminary rounds, with five wins and one loss to the defending champion and top seed Wake Forest University. Throughout the preliminary rounds, their opponents included teams from Liberty, George Mason University and University of Houston. In the elimination rounds, they debated Vanderbilt in the quarters and University of Minnesota in the semifinals. In the final round, they had a rematch with Wake Forest, and successfully defeated them on a unanimous decision. Pacheco was recognized as the competition’s fifth-place speaker and McElhinny ranked third.
The Burke award is given to a student whose qualities include “excellence in and passion for debate, a commitment to helping others, love and respect for the American Debate Association policy debate community and dedication to maintaining friendships despite the pressures of competition.” Students are nominated by coaches and peers, with the winner determined by a ballot of the students competing at the tournament.
The American Debate Association was founded in 1986, and this was the 27th year it has held a national tournament. This is the second American Debate Association National Championship title for UMW. The team also won the title in 2009.
UMW Debate concludes its regular competitive season at the National Debate Tournament at Indiana University next week, followed by multiple public debate competitions throughout the region. Follow @UMWDebate on twitter for the latest updates.
UMW Seniors Receive Bid to National Debate Tournament
University of Mary Washington seniors Colin McElhinny and Thomas Pacheco have received a first round at-large bid to the 2014 National Debate Tournament (NDT), to be held at Indiana University from March 28 through 31.
Thomas Pacheco ’14 (left) and Colin McElhinny ’14 are headed to the 2014 National Debate Tournament.
McElhinny and Pacheco competed at nine tournaments this season, including at Harvard, Dartmouth and Wake Forest, placing in the top three at three of them. Most recently, they competed at the University of Texas tournament which fielded more than 150 teams.
This year, 16 pairs of debaters received first round bids to the NDT, based on their performance at tournaments during the regular season. The other bid recipients include teams from Berkeley, Georgetown, Harvard, Kansas, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, Oklahoma, Rutgers, Towson, Wake Forest and West Georgia.
“We are very proud of Colin and Tom’s accomplishment,” said Adrienne F. Brovero, director of debate at UMW. “This is Colin’s second bid and Tom’s first. It is the fourth time in the last six years we have been recognized by our peers in the debate community as one of the top 16 teams going into the National Debate Tournament.”
This weekend, other members of the UMW Debate Team will compete at the National Debate Tournament district qualifier. After that, the team will compete at the American Debate Association Nationals at Liberty University, followed by multiple public debate competitions throughout the region. For updates from the competitions, follow UMW Debate on Twitter.
UMW Debate Seniors Place Third at Round Robin
Colin McElhinny ’14
University of Mary Washington Debate Team seniors Colin McElhinny (’14, Erie, Pa.) and Thomas Pacheco (’14, Baltimore, Md.) recently placed third at the Herbert L. James Round Robin held at Dartmouth College, Jan. 25 to 26.
Seven schools received invitations to the prestigious round robin, based on their performance at tournaments in the fall. The invitees included teams from UMW, Michigan, Northwestern, Georgetown, Harvard, Rutgers and Wake Forest. After six debates, UMW recorded four wins, including a win against the first place team from Michigan.
Thomas Pacheco ’14
“This award represents a significant competitive milestone in UMW Debate – it is the first time we’ve place in the top three at a round robin,” said Adrienne F. Brovero, director of debate at UMW. “We are looking forward to finishing our season strong.”
In early February, the UMW Debate Team will compete at the last tournament of the regular season at the University of Texas-Austin. After that, the team will compete at the district qualifying tournament, American Debate Association Nationals at Liberty University, and then the National Debate Tournament at Indiana University. Follow the team on Twitter @UMWDebate.
Debate Team Started National Tournament Ranked in Top Five
The University of Mary Washington Debate Team duo of juniors Colin McElhinny and Patrick MCleary rank fifth in the country going into the 2013 National Debate Tournament. The 67th annual National Debate Tournament, held through Monday, April 1 at Weber State University, brings together the top debate teams from across the country for five days of competition.
Colin McElhinny (left) and Patrick McCleary are ranked fifth going into the National Debate Tournament.
McElhinny and McCleary are in the top five alongside teams from Georgetown, Northwestern, Harvard and Wake Forest.
“Regardless of what happens over the next four days of competition, it is essential that we pause to acknowledge that their body of work this academic year has been deemed by their peers to be exemplary,” said Tim O’Donnell, professor of communication and director of debate at UMW.
Debate Coach Adrienne Brovero and Assistant Debate Coach Judd Kimball work closely with McElhinny, a political science and economics double major, and McCleary, a political science major.
During the opening ceremony of the tournament, O’Donnell received the Lucy M. Keele Award for his outstanding service to the debate community.
As the UMW director of debate, O’Donnell has coached the university’s nationally ranked intercollegiate policy debate team to win the American Debate Association National Championship in 2009 and four other times since 2001. He has received the association’s Robert Lambert Coach of the Year Award for Excellence and Service in Intercollegiate Debate. He was awarded the National Debate Tournament’s George Ziegelmueller Award in 2010.
To follow the team’s progress at the tournament, follow @UMWDebate on Twitter.
Debate Team Represented UMW at National Tournament
Students Peter Susko (left) and Colin McElhinny
The University of Mary Washington Debate Team qualified two groups of students to compete at the National Debate Tournament that began Thursday, March 29 at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga. The tournament, which ran through Monday, April 2, hosted 78 teams this year, all chosen based on a competitive qualification process. UMW has qualified for the National Debate Tournament 16 times in the tournament’s 66-year history, finishing as high as third in 2010.
Sophomores Patrick McCleary of Shrewsbury, Pa., and Colin McElhinny of Erie, Pa., qualified for the second consecutive year, placing second in the District 7 qualifying tournament, which was hosted by UMW in February.
Senior Peter Susko of Erie, Pa., and sophomore Thomas Pacheco of Baltimore, Md., comprise the second team. Susko has previously qualified for the tournament and in 2010 reached the semi-finals. The duo finished eighth in the qualifying tournament, securing the district’s final spot for the national tournament.
Results of the tournament are available at http://bit.ly/NDT2012.
Adrienne Brovero
Led by coach Adrienne Brovero, UMW’s debate team racked up a litany of awards at the recent Liberty University debate tournament including the top three speakers in the varsity division. In addition, the two-person tandem of Patrick McCleary and Colin McElhinny reached the finals, placing second after a close debate with Wake Forest University.
The UMW debate team has been in action every weekend since September and will continue through the end of March at the national championships. UMW will host an intercollegiate tournament on campus January 4-6, 2011 that is open for visitors.