WKU News

Pictured in the photo: Members of the WKU Forensics Debaters (Back row, left to right): Oli Wood Morris, Vaden Kumar, Kilian Reck and Sage Carter. (Middle row, left to right): Kole Ingram, Riley Ney, Nik Schintgen, Ameya Puranik and Chase Shockley. (Front row, left to right): Rae Fournier, Joshua St. Peter and JaKayala Brown.

WKU Forensics won the varsity championship at a tournament hosted by the University of North Texas on October 4 and 5.

Junior Nik Schintgen of Lansing, Kansas defeated Texas State University in the final round on a unanimous decision, while also earning the Top Speaker award at the tournament.

Lincoln-Douglas debate sponsored by the National Forensics Association is an individual policy event on the topic: The United States Federal Government should substantially increase its military presence and/or scientific exploration in the Arctic or Antarctic.

WKU Forensics also competed at the Washburn Warmup on September 20 and 21, where Senior Joshua St. Peter of Canton, Georgia finished second in a close decision to the University of Pittsburgh.

WKU paced the field with half of the final four at both tournaments, logging more elimination round wins than any other program.

Results from the University of North Texas are as follows:

Varsity Lincoln-Douglas Debate: Nik Schintgent; 1st; JaKayla Brown of Kansas City, Kansas, 3rd (tied); Ameya Puranik of Mountain House, California, 5th (tied).

Varsity Lincoln-Douglas Debate Speaker Awards: Nik Schintgen, 1st; Ameya Puranik, 3rd; JaKayla Brown, 6th; Vaden Kumar, of Newton, Kansas 8th.

Results from Washburn University are as follows:

Varsity Lincoln-Douglas Debate: Joshua St. Peter, 2nd; Vaden Kumar 3rd (tied); Nik Schintgen, 5th (tied); Ameya Puranik, Top 12.

Varsity Lincoln-Douglas Debate Speakers: Kole Ingram of Hindman, 5th Vaden Kumar, 7th; Nik Schintgen, 8th.

More: Check out the WKU Forensics Facebook page or follow @wkuforensics  and @DebateWku on X/Twitter.

Contact: Ganer Newman, (270) 745-6340

-- WKU –

Western Kentucky University prides itself on positioning its students, faculty and staff for long term success. As a student-centered, applied research university, WKU helps students expand on classroom learning by integrating education with real-world applications in the communities we serve. Our hilltop campus is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, which was recently named by Reader’s Digest as one of the nicest towns in America, just an hour’s drive from Nashville, Tennessee.