Pleasant Valley’s Ethics Bowl team claimed the top three podium positions at the St. Ignatius scrimmage on November 8th, marking a historic achievement for a team navigating a significant transition.
The sweep represents the first time in recent club history that PV has dominated the annual scrimmage hosted at St. Ignatius High School in Chicago. The victory comes despite the loss of nearly eight seniors from last year’s team, leaving six returning members to rebuild the club alongside new coach Robyn Samuelson.
Samuelson took over after former advisor Lynne Lundberg retired from the position at the end of last year. Lundberg founded PV’s Ethics Bowl team in 2021 and guided the program to national competitions for four consecutive years.
Samuelson embraced the challenge of leading a roster with many new faces. “Stepping into the role of the Ethics Bowl advisor has been very rewarding so far,” said Samuelson. “It’s a joy to watch students engage in collaborative conversation and debate. I’m impressed by the team, their critical thinking skills and ability to articulate under pressure.”
Senior Abigail Kunkel, an executive team member, has stepped into a leadership role to guide newer members through the competition format. “The scrimmage sweep means a lot to me as a leader and the team as a whole,” said Kunkel. “I feel like it’s made everyone more confident in themselves and each other as we transition into preparation for state.”
The team’s preparation involved intensive practice rounds and case research leading up to St. Ignatius. Judges consistently praised PV’s organization structure, with many complimenting how clearly teams articulated their arguments.
Junior Kaushik Balaji joined Ethics Bowl this year after friends sparked his interest in ethical discourse. He described adjusting to the collaborative competition format. “I think the most challenging part of getting used to the club was to find my voice and be confident in myself,” said Balaji. “Being a part of the scrimmage sweep really helped me with my confidence and felt very exhilarating.”
The influx of new members brought both new strengths and challenges for the team. “This year, we’ve had a lot of different opinions on the team, so we initially struggled with forming case arguments that everyone can agree with,” said Kunkel. “However, as the season has gone on, we’ve gotten much better at expressing our opinions and coming up with case arguments that everyone can be proud of.”
The diversity of perspectives has become an asset rather than an obstacle. “Something I like about being on a team with new faces and a new coach is the ability we have to make this season our own,” said Kunkel. “I think the new team is really strong when working together.”
To build on this foundation, the team has prioritized developing public speaking skills that the previous team demonstrated. “We’ve been playing public speaking games at meetings, as well as doing lots of practice rounds to grow confidence in public speaking,” Kunkel said. “We all collaborate to form arguments and work together to improve our public speaking and critical thinking skills.”
As the state competition in January approaches, Samuelson outlined her ambitious goals for her first season as coach. “I plan for us to win state, then regionals and then take a team to the National competition at UNC,” she said. “My goal is for us to grow as intellectuals, people, and team members.”
The scrimmage sweep showed early proof that new leadership and fresh perspectives can achieve greater success, establishing momentum as the team aims to uphold the legacy established over the past years.
