February 27 and 28, the Mock Trial team, a sub-section of speech and debate, made their way to the state competition at the Federal Courthouse downtown. Making it to the final round, the team placed second, an accomplishment that had not been reached since 2019. This was an even bigger achievement for senior team captains Ruby Smith and Jacob Torello, who worked hard throughout the year to prepare the team for this competition.

“Our team was primarily and almost entirely student-led and student-motivated. All the progress and all the things we learned were pushed forward by the students, by me, by Ruby, and by the seniors on the team. I’m just really happy to see that that hard work paid off and that we got that trophy,” Torello said.

Torello describes the moment they were announced as the winners of the preliminary rounds, defeating Har-Ber High School, a two-time reigning state champ.

“We got to the final call-out saying who would go to the championship round, and we were totally expecting to hear Har-Ber, and then they called us, and we were actually so excited,”  Torello said. “Everybody started crying, Ruby was crying, Ms. Block was crying. There were lots of hugs. It was very emotional, especially since for me it’s been my entire high school career, and I’ve been on the team since I was a freshman. We’ve only placed third in state since I’ve been here, so to get second in state and go to the championship round really meant a lot.”

This feat was not earned easily. To prepare for state, the team, including sophomore Emily Kolb,  had to practice for long hours almost every day and develop their case based on the civil case prompt they were given.

“Every week we had practices after school, and closer towards the competition, the practices went until 8 o’clock. On the weekends, we would go to the courtroom with Judge Baker, and we ran through our case a bunch of times,” Kolb said.

Teams are provided a case packet in October, with witness testimonies and evidence that the club has to sort through to prepare their performances. For senior John Adams, this involved heavy memorization and long hours put into preparation for the competition. 

“It’s very long and strenuous. To prep for this, we have to read things like jury instructions, stipulations, and most importantly, we have to get very in tune with what the witnesses say and their affidavits, which are three to four-page statements that six of these witnesses have. And in preparation for that, we have to prepare direct examination, cross-examination, all based on these affidavits,” Adams said.

While winning second place at state was a huge accomplishment, it is still sad that the season has come to an end. Spending late hours together throughout the year allowed the Mock Trial team not only to develop their skills but also to grow closer as a group.

“These are people you don’t necessarily see or talk to outside of school. It’s seniors, sophomores, and juniors, and you spend six months seeing them every day after school to prepare the case.  After it’s over, especially for seniors, you probably won’t talk to these people as much, or maybe not at all, and the competition is fun, so it’s bittersweet for the team that it’s over,” Adams said.

With the two captains and seven other seniors graduating next year, the rest of the team will have big shoes to fill. For many of the underclassmen, the seniors played an important role in helping them learn the competition and improve their skills throughout the season. Through months of practice, preparation, and competitions, the younger members of the team built strong relationships with the seniors who helped guide them.

“We are so sad, and we’re gonna miss them. It was my second year doing it, so I really got to know them, and now that they’re leaving, it’s very sad, especially since they taught us everything,” said Kolb.