Undergraduate Mock Trial Advances to National Championship Tournament

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Team T-Rex, back row from left: Jared Presley, Harrison Merrick and Bryton Miller; middle row: Vasoula Drosopoulos, Julianna Kantner and Madalyn Acton; and front row: Maddie Gwinner, Jose Ruiz and Trinity Tipton.

This past weekend, the U of A Mock Trial program sent two teams to compete in the Opening Round Championships in Fort Worth, Texas. Team T-Rex competed as Arkansas A, and Team Velociraptor competed as Arkansas B in a field of 24 top teams from Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Louisiana and Georgia. The top six teams in the field moved on and earned a bid to the National Championship Tournament in Memphis, Tennessee. 

Arkansas A finished with a 6-2 record, placing third out of the entire tournament. This brings the A team's combined record for the semester to 28 wins, two losses and two ties. With a third-place finish, U of A Mock Trial will send a team to the national tournament for the first time in program history. Arkansas B ended with a 2.5-5.5 record, improving from their performance at the tournament last year. 

In addition to advancing to the National Championship Tournament, Arkansas A also had two competitors receive individual awards. Competitors receive "ranks," with a maximum of 20 ranks. Harrison Merrick received an Outstanding Witness award, receiving 17 ranks on the Defense. Julianna Kantner received an Outstanding Attorney award, receiving 19 ranks on the Defense. 

To give full credit to the teams, all the members who competed this past weekend are listed below: 

Arkansas A is captained by Julianna Kantner and Bryton Miller, coached by Jose Ruiz and made up of Madalyn Acton, Jared Presley, Harrison Merrick, Vasoula Drosopoulos, Trinity Tipton and Maddie Gwinner. 

Arkansas B was captained by Zoee Simpson and Anthony Sterba, coached by Adam Rose and made up of Piper Harris, Luke Hubbard, Josh Marvine, Bryce Mitsdarfer, Dylan Reynolds, Abby Walton and Gabe Miller. 

Congratulations to Team T-Rex for making it to nationals and to all the other members who have competed this season!