March 12, 2014 at 3:28 p.m.
Another state championship for Rhinelander mock trial
Another state championship for Rhinelander mock trial
With finals appearances in 22 of the past 28 years, Rhinelander has become a staple at the Madison-based tournament.
Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson, who presided over the final round, made a lighthearted remark about Rhinelander's dominance.
"I see we have a team from Rhinelander here this year," she said, according to the Rhinelander coaches. "Have you been here before?"
Rhinelander skated through Sunday's semifinal round with wins over Superior, Lodi and Christian Life School. A loss to Appleton Xavier moved Rhinelander's record to 3-1 overall, good enough for second place and a spot in Monday's final trial. Tournament favorite Shorewood entered Monday with an undefeated record.
Faculty adviser Kathy Vick-Martini said her team knew they were capable of knocking off Shorewood and claiming the crown
"We held a working breakfast meeting on Monday morning to debrief the defense side of the case and fix the problems that surfaced during the semifinals," she said. "I made a list of the issues that needed to be addressed and asked for input from our attorney coaches Mike Bloom, Jim Jacobi and Amy Ferguson. We knew it would be an uphill battle to win, given the inexperience of our team, but if we were underdogs, someone must have forgotten to tell the kids. In order to win, we told them they had to believe in themselves and they obviously did."
Shorewood entered the final as the plaintiff and Rhinelander was assigned the role of the defense. The trial began with opening statements by each team. Shorewood then called its three witnesses to testify and Rhinelander cross-examined them. Next, Rhinelander called its own witnesses and Shorewood had an opportunity to cross-examine. The trial ended with closing arguments and ultimately a Rhinelander victory.
Vick-Martini said it wasn't close.
"We may have been the underdog, but we were dominant in every facet of the trial," she said.
With the win, Rhinelander has earned a spot at the national tournament. Each year, a different state hosts the event, and this year's will be in Wisconsin. The tournament will look very much like the state tournament, with the same format, but slightly expanded. Instead of one day of semifinal action, there will be two.
Vick-Martini said the team is already focused on its next challenge.
"We have spent the last five months preparing for the state tournament," she said. "On April 1, we will receive new case materials and start all over, in preparation for the national tournament, only this time, we have just one month to prepare. Every week until the tournament, we will be condensing the work done in a month during the state season and all the while, we will also be fundraising to cover our expenses, which are not paid by the school district."
Winners from each state will take part in the national tournament, representing a much higher level of difficulty for Rhinelander.
"There are no easy draws," Vick-Martini said. "The level of competition is much more difficult and intense. Our kids always feel additional pressure, because the community has become accustomed to our success. The expectation is that we will win, even if the team is young and inexperienced."
Amber Sheth was named one of the five best attorneys at the state competition and Ellie Rickman also earned special recognition as one of the five best witnesses. The entire team performed well though. Seven of the nine members earned one or more perfect scores.
The national tournament will start May 8 in Madison.
Andy Hildebrand may be reached at [email protected].
WEATHER SPONSORED BY
E-Editions
Latest News
E-Editions
Events
August
To Submit an Event Sign in first
Today's Events
No calendar events have been scheduled for today.
Comments:
You must login to comment.