A Tale of Two Academic Teams

Chapter 11: Columbia Online Invitational

But once the practice round starts, both teams start pretending they are at the final of the tournament they practice for, thinking it would bring out their best game. That, even though what the Venomous Agendas pair wants out of Columbia doesn't actually require winning the tournament, just getting to the octos. (For policy this means the semis, and same goes of Congressional, LD needs quarters)

Yet the Venomous Agendas had their moments where they feel nervous, not as much as against the Greenhill pair they faced a month before Isidore Newman, but enough for them to need to work for their victory.

"This seriously makes me wonder how strong the DCFL is as a circuit" Joe sighs.

"Not that great, I'll admit. Not for PF. There are only six PF pairings in the DCFL, and we're going to play all of them" Francis comments.

"Amen" David continues.

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Finally, a debate tournament that doesn't make us miss classes for it. On Fridays, if we attend a debate tournament, our sections just don't feel the same to the non-debaters, especially not in language arts or social studies, Joe muses, while reviewing the schedule. Six preliminary rounds of debating; depending on how far they advance, they'll spend all weekend debating from their homes, or delivering speeches in a synchronous event.

Yet, before the tournament begins on Friday afternoon, Sadie feels the need to warn her parents, who are home early.

"Mom, Dad, please don't disturb me while I'm in my room this weekend. This time around, it's not about rehearsing for debate tournaments"

"What could it be then?" her parents ask her.

"The tournament itself will be held online. You're welcome to watch one game, and we're going to play three games today, three more games tomorrow morning. Tomorrow afternoon marks the start of the playoffs" Sadie explains to her parents.

"Good luck"

"Dinner is at five PM; I must be back in my room by six PM for our second game"

Public forum has by far the biggest field: a whopping 158 entries, with no less than a dozen top pairs in their respective states attending. Congressional has about half as many, policy and LD have 40 and 82 entries respectively. Extemp and original oratory, on the other hand, have only about thirty players each. Which means the tournament is all the more daunting to Sadie.

At the end of the first day of the tournament, Kelsie, one of the St. Croix Prep players, tells something to Rebecca after the decision for the policy game has been made. Which was a close one, but the Venomous Agendas win on the aff.

"I heard about how one of your teammates is going to the HSNCT this season. I would like to speak with her" Kelsie tells Rebecca.

"I know who you're talking about. Quiz Bowl Sadie is busy playing her third game. I'll let you know once her game ends" Rebecca then tells her opponent.

Policy goes 2-0 that night. However, the field is much stronger in public forum than in policy, and, as usual for major inter-state tournaments, power matching is in effect, so PF, after themselves going 1-1 after 2 games, somehow plays against a Venomous Agendas major out-of-state mathletics rival. The judgment arrives and all four players are shaking in their seats...

"I know this is a heartbreaking decision to make, but... Whitman GY, you lost. The RFD will arrive soon" the judge announces to the pairs.

Walt Whitman. A Maryland magnet school specializing in humanities and social studies. The mathletes talked about playing this place earlier this season in some nationwide online math league, Math Madness they called it... Sadie muses while Rebecca forwards the St. Croix Prep player wanting to speak to Sadie.