If you look closely at the WUDL Sweepstakes trophy, it says “Banneker, 2015-2016” right at the top. Banneker was our first Sweepstakes winner, with Coach Zigmond’s team routing most of the competition in our first year with a great cadre of talented students. The squad continued to be a powerhouse, sending students to Nationals in 2017 and 2018, but their dominance faded as other squads like DuVal, Capital City, and lately, BASIS DC and Stuart Hobson captured more and more trophies. 

Senior Parker McCauley transferred to Banneker from DCI to start their freshman year. At the time, the squad was re-building, with virtually no returning debaters. I told them that this was an opportunity; a blank canvas to rebuild the team. Together with Coach Dr. Sara Arndt, they got to work, and have claimed the runner up position, “Best High School Team” the last three years. Now, it’s their time to shine again. 

Banneker is sending their first partnership to nationals since 2018, including freshman Henry Blanc. With strong Varsity partnerships in every grade, and a large novice contingent just starting their careers. Asst. Coach Mehul Gupta and Dr. Arndt are well positioned to defend their title for years to come. 

WUDL Executive Director David Trigaux always coaches against the current winners, and is excited about the change of the guard. “It’s good to keep the those on top sharp by encouraging other teams to step up and challenge them. It creates a healthy ecosystem where everyone grows and improves.” 

We are also excited to recognize our Sweepstakes Runners Up:

High School Team of the Year: DC International

This summer, I had the pleasure of working with several of DC International’s students in lab. They were some of the most engaged students we had this summer, writing creative, innovative cases and eagerly jumping into every activity but lacked all confidence in their own abilities. 

Let this be a bit of validation to those abilities. Coach King’s squad doubled in size this season, with a number of students taking huge steps forward. Fielding 5+ JV teams and a few that wandered into Varsity as the season went on, DCI was a team to fear across every division. Even more impressively — their oldest debater, Ella Ross, is a freshman. 

We’re very excited to see what the future holds for this dynamic team! 

Middle School Team of the Year: Stuart Hobson

What more is there to say? Stuart Hobson had 91(!) debaters this year, surpassing their previously unsurpassable record of 80 last season. They qualified two teams to Middle School Nationals, continuing a pattern of having teams in the Semi-finals or better of the tournament for four years now. 

Coach Plaisted graduated 22 / 26 of his most experienced students last year, and there were times when he was concerned about sustaining their great run of success. Indeed, he came up to me at the end of the Northrop Grumman Thanksgiving Throwdown and asked what happened. I told him “Academy of Health Sciences,” which was a fair descriptor to the way they conquered the Novice division earlier this season. Despite the graduations and the ups and downs, Coach Plaisted pulled together another award winning squad. Led by holdovers Marshall Thorpe, Fiona Levett, Mina Ozturk, they assembled a great new cadre of up and coming stars like Reagan, Prince, Zeve, ian, Bea, Emma, and so many more. 

Onward to 100 next season? Join us next year to find out!