Submitted PhotoNathalie Jaimes and Travis Edwards, Valdosta State University students, win second place at state debate championship.

VALDOSTA — The Valdosta State University Forensics Team’s Travis Edwards and Nathalie Jaimes won second place at the Georgia Parliamentary Debate Association State Championship, according to a VSU press release.

“I didn’t expect us to do as well as we did since it was our first competition,” Edwards said. “I was going into it with the mindset that it would be good experience but nothing else. Then we started winning rounds and I realized that we had really prepared well.”

Edwards and Jaimes competed in the novice division of the National Parliamentary Debate Association — two-on-two debate — portion of the Georgia Parliamentary Debate Association State Championship, hosted at VSU. They competed in eight rounds of competition and won five.

“Nathalie’s energy and dedication brought us to the end,” said Edwards, who also won a second-place speaker award at the state event. “Whenever I was doubtful, she encouraged me. Wherever I fell short, I could count on her to make up for it tenfold.”

Edwards first joined debate in fall of 2015 but did not compete until this spring, due to other commitments. Jaimes joined debate this spring.

“Travis motivated me to work hard and do my best,” said Jaimes, who also won an eighth-place speaker award at the state event. “I couldn’t have asked for a better partner. It didn’t really matter that we didn’t get first place … the fact that we made it to the final round was huge.”

Jaimes expects to graduate in May 2020 with a bachelor of science in psychology, according to the press release. She would like to become a psychiatrist and open her own practice. She is the daughter of David and Dora Disheroon of Jasper.

Edwards expects to graduate in May 2018 with a bachelor of arts in sociology and anthropology and a minor in French. He is a member of VSU’s Anthropology Club and Sociology Club and serves as a resident assistant in Georgia Hall. He would like to earn a master of arts in applied anthropology, serve in the Peace Corps, and become an anthropology professor, according to a press release. He is the son of Travis Edwards of Ellenwood and Ena Grier of Stone Mountain.

“Now that we have solidified our place in debate, I’m ready to compete and no longer just observe,” Edwards said. “I’m excited to see where we will go.”