Racers End the Fall Season with a Debate Double-Header Victory
Murray State’s Speech & Debate Union concluded their last tournament of the fall semester with 7 championship titles: 2 debate championships, 3 champion debate speakers, and 2 champion team sweepstakes.
Caleb McCurren (senior psychology major) scored a double win: CHAMPION IPDA debater and CHAMPION speaker in the JV division. Meanwhile, in the novice division, Coleton Boyd (freshman physics & math double major) won his second IPDA CHAMPION debate title this season.
NPDA Finalists
In National Parliamentary Debate, the duo of Essabella Voss (freshman criminal justice major) and Caleb McCurren delivered a standout performance, finishing as Tournament Runners-Up. Their strong showing highlighted the pair’s seamless collaboration, balanced speaking roles, and unified strategic vision - team-driven strengths that consistently elevate their competitiveness in a deep and talented field.
Rounding out a standout weekend for Murray State, the NPDA team of Hailey Meshew (freshman marketing major) and Colton Boyd secured 3rd place in NPDA, showcasing sharp cross-examination teamwork, responsive case building, and mutual support in high-pressure debates. Their performance reflects a growing synergy that has strengthened with each tournament.
Speaker Awards
CHAMPION Speaker – JV IPDA: Caleb McCurren
CHAMPION Speaker – Novice NPDA: Coleton Boyd
CHAMPION Speaker – Open NPDA: Coleton Boyd
2nd Place Speaker – Novice NPDA: Essabella Voss
2nd Place Speaker – Open NPDA: Caleb McCurren
2nd Place Speaker – Novice IPDA: Essabella Voss
4th Place Speaker – Novice NPDA: Hailey Meshew
5th Place Speaker – Novice IPDA: Coleton Boyd
5th Place Speaker – JV IPDA: Samuel Miller
IPDA Elimination Round Success
The team broke multiple competitors into out-rounds:
Quarterfinalist – Novice IPDA: Essabella Voss
Octofinalist – Novice IPDA: Hailey Meshew
Advancing through power-matched elimination brackets is no small feat, and both competitors demonstrated resilience and skill against challenging fields.
Team Performance
Murray’s Debaters had an 81% win rate in IPDA!! That level of dominance is almost unheard of, and it’s exactly why a powerhouse squad of just five debaters surged past 20 schools and 68 competitors to capture the CHAMPION title in IPDA Debate Sweepstakes.
Murray also won the CHAMPION title in Division 2 Overall sweepstakes — an award recognizing their cumulative performance over two days of debate and IEs, and 2nd place in NPDA Debate Sweepstakes.
A Strong Finish to a Strong Semester
These results underscore the depth and dedication of the Speech & Debate Union. With two divisional champions, multiple speaker awards, and several elimination-round appearances, the Racers have built powerful momentum heading into the spring season.
Congratulations to all our competitors for representing Murray State with pride, professionalism, and excellence. The SDU looks forward to building on this energy and continuing our tradition of competitive success.
