After a record-breaking junior debate season, Seniors Maggie Howerton and Amy Lloyd were invited to the 2023 Greenhill Round Robin in Dallas, Texas. The tournament is reserved for the Top 14 senior teams in the country, and Howerton and Lloyd are the first in BVSW History to compete.

“It’s one of the most difficult tournaments of the year,” Howerton said. “You’re debating the best teams in the country, so it’s a little nerve-racking, for sure.”

Howerton and Lloyd spent all summer preparing, and with the tournament’s start date of Sept. 15th approaching, all available hours are devoted to perfecting their debate.

“The Greenhill Tournament is right after [the Round Robin], so it’s a really long weekend of debating,” said Lloyd. “We want to be prepared.”

Despite their successes, neither Howerton or Lloyd initially planned to debate competitively. In fact, as freshmen, both students took debate to get an art credit.

“I took the debate because it was an art credit,” Lloyd said. “But then I gave a practice-speech in class and one of the older team-mates encouraged me to continue.”

And now, four years later, Howerton and Lloyd are making history. Alongside being the first Southwest team to compete at the Round Robin, they’re also the fourth in the state of Kansas.