Tags: central high school, tuckness, national forensics league, public forum,

News Leader

When Brian McGarry and Ben Shantz were paired as debate partners last summer, they weren't sure it would work out.

At their first tournament together, they placed fourth. At the next, they didn't place high enough to get any trophy.

"They were just getting used to each other," recalled Central High debate coach Jack Tuckness. "I tried to explain to them that life would get better if they would hang in there. And life got lots better."

At their next tournament in Clayton, the duo took first place, sparking a winning streak that went 46 rounds.

They won a spot to compete at the National Forensic League speech and debate tournament in Birmingham, Ala. last month. There -- competing against 248 of the best public forum debate teams in the nation -- they finished third.

"It was definitely exciting and nerve-racking," said McGarry, a 2009 Central High graduate. "But it was one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had."

Overall, the two completed the season with a win-loss record of 80-8.

Schantz took up debate during his freshman year at Glendale High at the urging of his mother, an attorney, who had debated as a student at Parkview High. He won a spot in the Student Congress event at the national speech and debate tournament during his sophomore year.

But for his junior year, he transferred to Central High for the International Baccalaureate program.

Coach Tuckness, who knew Schantz from church, thought he would make a good partner for McGarry -- who was going into his senior year having placing 17th in the nation with Samantha Maerz, who had just graduated.

Shantz said he felt uneasy, worrying he might not be in the same league as a debater who'd had such a high finish.

McGarry also wasn't sure about working with someone he didn't know. "But I put my trust in Tuckness and it all worked out," he said.

Tuckness said debate partners don't have to be best friends to be successful, though they do have to respect each other.

Throughout the year, the pair dove into assigned topics, acquiring expertise on key subjects including health care systems, social networking, nuclear energy and the No Child Left Behind law.