Reyes, Alcañeses, and Gonzalez Bag Top Three Speaker Awards at SLIDE UP 2017

Renz Reyes (12-A), Luigi Alcañeses (12-A), and Hans Gonzalez (11-Hoyos) were awarded as the 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd Overall Best Speakers out of a total of 156 debaters who competed at the Southern Luzon Intellectual Debate Encounter in UP (SLIDE UP) Los Baños from February 25-26, 2017.
 
SLIDE UP used to be a tournament exclusive to schools from Southern Luzon until three years ago when the tournament was opened to schools nationwide. Last year, the team of Alcañeses, Gonzalez, and Paulo Valencia (12-N) won SLIDE UP 2016. This year, the team of Reyes, Alcañeses, and Gonzalez came very close to achieving the first ever back-to-back championship win in SLIDE UP. The team lost to La Salle Greenhills on a 5-4 split decision before a panel of nine judges. However, Team Ateneo was undefeated throughout the competition until the very last round, which was a debate on the motion, “This house regrets the dominant narrative that life in itself is a value.”
 
Teams ASHS B, comprised of Carlos Tiu (12-A), Nicky Solis (12-B), & Ervin Grana (12-L) and ASHS C, comprised of Mikko Vitug (11-Pongracz), Drico Ramiro (12-A), & JC Cruz (12-L) both reached the semifinals of the competition. Vitug was also awarded as the 4^th Best Speaker of the tournament, while Cruz and Tiu tied as the 7^th Best Speakers of the Tournament.