Rhodes College is thrilled to announce that its mock trial team will compete in the American Mock Trial Association National Championship Tournament, marking an impressive 38th consecutive appearance at the nationals. The tournament will take place April 17-19 in Washington, D.C.
Mock trial features courtroom drama through a structured format that includes opening statements, witness testimony, cross-examinations, and closing arguments. This dynamic experience is built upon a season of hard-fought competitions, with teams participating in fall invitationals followed by regional and open-round championship tournaments in the spring.
From a starting pool of around 800 teams, only the top 50 will have the opportunity to compete at the national level. These teams will battle it out for a chance to secure their place in the championship finals. Alongside Rhodes, other esteemed institutions will join the competition, including Fordham University (coached by Rhodes alum Amelia Yeomelakis ’15), Tulane University (coached by Rhodes alums Paul Hubbell ’13 and JD Deming ’20), Princeton University, University of Virginia, UCLA, University of Texas, University of Chicago, Vanderbilt University, Stanford University, and Emory University.
Rhodes students representing the college at nationals are Yasmeen Abunasrah, Johnathan Burch, Julia Brinker, Sienna Collier, Zoe Haug, Mitchell Leander, Eli Palmer, Amelia Rursch, Dana Shala, Evie Shankel, Musa Sheriff, Cece Warhurst, and Hadley Wright.
“Our program starts each year with over 50 talented students. We also rely heavily on the volunteer coaching efforts of many of our alumni,” said Anna Eldridge, director of Mock Trial at Rhodes. “While only a handful of students will travel to nationals, the success of our program would not be possible without the combination of efforts from every student and coach. We are excited to see what these students do on the national stage, and I continue to be amazed and the incredible talent of our students.”