Our Middle School Mock Trial team had a great regional competition on Saturday! They conducted three entire trials in a single day at the Lexington Summary Courthouse. The team presented the plaintiff’s case twice and the defendant’s case once. 42 schools competed statewide, including 8 in our region; our team went head-to-head against three of those schools. Our students’ poise and confidence were fantastic and several of the students were not even recognizable as the same people who had been shy and timid in front of others just a few short weeks ago. Whether it was delivering an opening statement with no notes, effectively portraying a medical doctor as an expert witness, arguing the merits of an objection to a real judge, or drawing the truth out of a difficult witness on cross-examination, it was a great day!

The following students received awards in their respective rounds:

Most Effective Witness:

• Mani Lee
• Braelynn Sharpe
• Anna Thompson

Most Effective Attorney:

• Lauren Benenhaley
• Anna Thompson
• Bess Thompson

We want to recognize all of the students as well as Mrs. Strickland and Mr. Failoni for their commitment, time, effort, and performance. They prepared hard for two and a half months, and they competed well against the other teams in our region.

Thank you to Mock Trial coach and Ben Lippen parent Jay Thompson for contributing this article and corresponding photos.