Amid classes, block schedules, and breaks, the mock trial team is building on its success from the first part of the season as it heads into the next phase—the stacked tournaments.
The team hosted a successful King of the Hill tournament here on campus, where the Impractical Mockers team got an honorable mention for the Spirit of AMTA award, the Real Housewives of Midlands team placed second, and the Ate (9) team came in first. They followed this up by judging the Middle School Regional event that took place on the Hilltop, before being placed into stacked teams. Sorting the students into three teams after seeing them in action maximizes their competitiveness by creating cohesive, balanced teams.
With just two weeks of practice, these newly stacked teams went off to face other recently stacked teams at the Back to Normal Invitational hosted by Illinois State University at the McLean County Courthouse in Bloomington, Illinois, and the Badger the Witness Invitational hosted by the University of Wisconsin at the Dane County Courthouse in Madison, Wisconsin.
Team 1007, Girls and Gavin, had a solid showing at the Back to Normal Invitational and ended with a record of 4-4. Team 1008, or Caffeine Crew, also attended the Back to Normal Invitational and returned with a 4-4 record and a witness award for Captain Goretty Nabwire ’29. Finally, team 1006–known as Constructively Redacted–went to the Badger the Witness Invitational. They returned with a winning record of 6-4-2 against a strong field, including sweeping a team that went to Nationals last year, and an attorney award for Kaden Legore ’27.
“This represented a strong start to our stacked season as we prepare for Regionals,” Head Mock Trial Coach Max Handler said.
But winning ballots and individual awards isn’t the whole story with the 2025-2026 mock trial team. Behind the scenes, this group of students is characterized by a combination of hard work and community.
Sunny Howard ’27 originally joined mock trial to participate in something she already knew she loved, but it’s the people that keep her coming back.
“It helped me be connected to campus, and my favorite thing about it has been helping new students every year become better at mock trial and seeing them come into their own on campus,” Howard said.
Every practice starts with fun: Sirius Barnett ’28 opens practice with an ice breaker question, helping everyone to get to know each other better while kicking things off in the right frame of mind.
“I would say that these students work hard and make that work fun,” Handler said. “They have really impressed me with their ability to be self-directed and to figure out what they want to work on and need help with.”
The mock trial team will continue to bring this combination of hard work and having fun to stacked competitions throughout December and January. In February, they will participate in the regional competition. Those teams that perform well in regional competitions go on to the semi-final competition, which is called Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS), in March. The top six finishers at each of the ORCS move on to Nationals in April, where the 48 best teams in the country will compete, with an entirely new case.
Mock trial is an intercollegiate activity that combines speech, theatre, and debate. New incoming students interested in participating in mock trial, whether they are first-year or transfer students, may also qualify for $1,000-$5,000 in extra financial assistance on top of the merit scholarships, renewable each year you’re part of the program.