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GT Mock Trial Team Paces Way To Hot 2017 Start

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Following a promising series of showings throughout the fall 2016 semester, the Georgia Tech Mock Trial team is off to an even stronger start in the second half of the 2016-17 school year – post notably punctuated by a first-place finish this past weekend. Situated within the Pre-Law Program in the Ivan Allen College School of Public Policy and overseen by program director Robert Pikowsky, the squad is eager to capitalize on their recent success. 

The GT Mock Trial (“GTMT”) team kicked off the new calendar year by hosting the 12th Annual Ramblin’ Wreck Tournament during the weekend of January 21-22. During the high stakes mock trial gathering that featured fellow elite schools like Vanderbilt and Brown, the GTMT team battled their way to an impressive eighth-placed finish, besting two-thirds of the entire competition. Sophomore Keyes Gilmer earned an Outstanding Attorney Award for her efforts in during the mock trials. 

William Warihay, one of the GTMT team’s two coaches and practicing attorney, says this experience was crucial to the team’s development, noting the significance of being able to compete on their home turf. 

“The strong start at Ramblin' Wreck was both reassuring and exciting,” Warihay said. “As a coach, you never know what to expect when your teams come back from the two month competition break and the Holiday/semester break, so it was great to see us pick up right where we left off in the Fall.”

The GTMT team was eager to capitalize on their positive performance from the Ramblin’ Wreck Tournament, though. A quick turnaround enabled them to do just that, as the Second Annual Seminole Smackdown at Florida State University was just around the corner for them. 

During the January 28-29 meet in Tallahassee, the GTMT team again faced similarly stiff competition from schools like Brown and the University of Florida. On this occasion, though, the honorable Midtown-based undergrads triumphed their way to a 6-2 overall record, good enough to earn them a first-place overall finish at the tournament. 

In addition to their victorious efforts at Florida State, the GTMT team was also able to earn some hardware for individual awards. Third-year student Sarah Stebbins was honored as the tournament’s top attorney, while fourth-year student Ali Foreman was awarded as the tournament’s top witness. 

“I knew our A team was good enough to defend their championship, but mock trial is such a subjective activity, you just never know how it's going to turn out.  Lucky for us, the A team rose to the challenge,” Wairhay said. “Sarah and Ali are leaders on an already exceptional GTMT A team.”

The GTMT’s biggest challenge is just around the corner, however, as the single-elimination portion of their season is quickly approaching. Specifically, GTMT’s C team will compete in said single-elimination format meet this coming weekend, at AMTA tournament at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, SC. 

“The AMTA elimination tournaments are always difficult, and with GTMT coming off of last year's success by finishing 5th in the country, we will have a target on our backs,” Warihay said. “GTMT is ready and up to the challenge to hopefully reach and win the National Championship this year.”
 

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  • Workflow Status:Published
  • Created By:Ryan McDonnell
  • Created:01/31/2017
  • Modified By:Ryan McDonnell
  • Modified:02/03/2017

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