Published on November 21, 2025  
Aubrey Bechtold and Maggi Kimbrell
Aubrey Bechtold and Maggi Kimbrell

Samford University’s debate team closed out the 2025 fall semester with a strong showing at the Wake Forest ADA Fall Championship, bringing its largest group of the season and marking significant accomplishments for both new and returning debaters.

Four teams represented Samford at the tournament: Grace Dierking and Angelina Dempsey; Anna Sumrall and Olivia Jose; Maggi Kimbrell and Aubrey Bechtold; and Hadley Phillips and Sofije Johnston. Six of these students were competing in their first tournament of the year.

Maggi Kimbrell and Aubrey Bechtold led the contingent with a 4–2 record in preliminary rounds, earning a place in the elimination bracket. The pair fell in a narrow 2–1 decision to the University of Houston in the double-octofinals. Bechtold also earned individual recognition as the eighth overall speaker out of 94 competitors.

“This is only the second tournament for Aubrey and the first for Maggi,” said Derek Hilligoss, director of debate. “I’m proud of them both for rising to the occasion.”

Hilligoss also praised the full team for its effort and camaraderie throughout the event.

“I’m proud of all the debaters making it to their first in-person tournament, and for most of them, their first tournament overall,” he said. “Tournaments are long, arduous days, and the debaters did an amazing job all while supporting each other and hyping each other up. This was a great way to end the first semester with the squad.”

As the team looks ahead to the spring season, Samford’s debaters continue to grow not only as competitors but as emerging professionals equipped with skills that extend far beyond the tournament setting. Debate sharpens critical thinking, research ability, communication and poise under pressure, attributes that consistently set Samford students apart in whatever fields they pursue.

These high impact learning experiences exemplify the kind of academic excellence that helped Samford earn its top 10 national ranking for student learning opportunities from The Wall Street Journal, demonstrating how programs like debate prepare students for meaningful careers and lives of purpose.

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Located in the Homewood suburb of Birmingham, Alabama, Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford enrolls 6,324 students from 44 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford is widely recognized as having one of the most beautiful campuses in America, featuring rolling hills, meticulously maintained grounds and Georgian-Colonial architecture. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks with the second-highest score in the nation for its 98% Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.