News

Season Opener: George Mason University and Social Justice Debates (Sept. 2025)

The team returned from season opening tournaments with big early results. Varsity debaters Lara Ozcayir and Ashaz Rahman advanced through Octofinals to reach Quarterfinals at George Mason before falling to the host team, with Ozcayir named fourth-best speaker at the tournament. On the novice side, two URDU teams with three brand-new debaters reached elimination rounds — Dane Yoder and Ben Rosenthal fell in a close 2-1 Octofinal decision, while Raza Ali and James Giovinazzo reached Quarterfinals before losing to the eventual tournament champions. In the Social Justice Debates' online opener, Nicole Martinez and Erin Kent went undefeated 3-0 in prelims to reach Finals, narrowly losing to Morehouse College, with Kent named fifth-best speaker out of 56 competitors.

Toronto and West Point (Oct. 2025)

The team split forces across two tournaments in one weekend. At the elite Hart House British Parliamentary tournament in Toronto, teams finished with solid rankings but just missed elimination rounds, while at West Point three URDU teams posted winning records and broke to elimination rounds across all three divisions. Sophie Bassingthwaite and Aisha Mbaye reached JV Semifinals, as did Faith Jones and Aiden Swartz, while Emily Cook and James Giovinazzo reached Novice Octofinals — with seven URDUers earning speaker awards.

Binghamton Regional Opener (Oct. 2025)

Three URDU teams broke to elimination rounds — Emily Cook/James Giovinazzo in Novice, Sophie Bassingthwaite/Aiden Swartz in Open, and Ashaz Rahman/Lara Ozcayir as the top seed in Open — with Cook and Giovinazzo reaching Octofinals and Ozcayir/Rahman fighting to Semifinals. Emily Cook, competing at her very first tournament, was named 2nd-best novice speaker.

University of Vermont Huber Debates (Nov. 2025)

Despite sleet and snow, new members Caroline, Robbie, Arabella, and Rae got their first tournament experience, and Ezrin Katz Saltzman and Robbie Cahili reached Rookie Finals as one of the top first-year teams. Faith Liu and Carter Schmitt finished prelims as the #2 seed and reached Quarterfinals, with Liu named 7th speaker out of over 100 competitors and Schmitt 11th; Carly Zubrzycki was recognized as a top judge.

USUDC at UPenn (Nov. 2025)

One of the most prestigious tournaments in the nation, hosted in Philadelphia. Beyond exploring the city and facing off against elite programs, the highlight was Faith and Carter breaking to an outstanding 12th place and finishing the weekend as quarterfinalists.

BP World Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria (Jan. 2025)

The season's final 2025 tournament doubled as the first of 2026 — a trip across the world to debate and judge alongside students from schools URDU rarely gets to face. Sleep-deprived and often hungry, but consistently in awe of the experience. Next year's WUDC will be a much shorter trip: just four hours away in Ottawa.

Gotham Debates at The New School (Feb. 2026)

Policy braved the cold for a strong showing in NYC:

• Rochester MJ (Aisha and Faith) debated up and went 3-3 in Open
• Rochester BC (Gaurav and Emily) went 4-1 as third seed — a great first tournament for Gaurav, with Emily taking 8th speaker in the novice pool
• Rochester PZ (Gia and Diana) jumped in last-minute for their first-ever tournament in the novice pool
• Rochester AV (Douglas and Riya) both competed for the first time, with Riya trying out a new format
• Rochester OR (Lara and Ashaz) judged and coached for the weekend — full circle from student to teacher

Northeast Regional Championships at Suffolk University (Feb. 2026)

URDU competed in the novice and Spanish divisions and brought home three speaker awards:

• Justin Carrero — 10th place, Spanish division (his first-ever tournament)
• Gaurav Barve — 9th place, novice division (his second tournament)
• Emily Cook — 7th place, with strong speaks throughout

Social Justice Debates National Championship at Morehouse College (Mar. 2026)

Erin, Monica, and Nicole finished a great national championship as quarterfinalists! We were happy to be able to hear a lecture from and talk with this year’s topic scholar, Gilda Daniels!

CEDA Nationals (Apr. 2026)

Emily and Gaurav — who broke together at Gotham Debates and each picked up individual speaker awards at Northeast Regionals — qualified for the novice break at CEDA and finished as finalists! A great capstone to a strong rookie season for both.