(Posted November 14, 2022)

Juniata College’s Mock Trial team completed a successful fall invitational season. Members of the A team, including, front row, from the left, Brenna Haggerty ’25, Nattie Daversa ’23, Alex Sanna ’24; back row, Olivia Day ’24, Kyle Boyer ’24, captain Dan Cummins ’24, Emerson Strawser ’25, and Rich Wei ’26, took second place in the Swear Me In Scotty tournament at Carnegie Mellon University.

Juniata College’s Mock Trial team completed a successful fall invitational season. Members of the A team, including, front row, from the left, Brenna Haggerty ’25, Nattie Daversa ’23, Alex Sanna ’24; back row, Olivia Day ’24, Kyle Boyer ’24, captain Dan Cummins ’24, Emerson Strawser ’25, and Rich Wei ’26, took second place in the Swear Me In Scotty tournament at Carnegie Mellon University.

HUNTINGDON, Pa. — Juniata College’s Mock Trial team returned to campus with a second-place win at the “Swear Me In Scotty” tournament at Carnegie Mellon University, marking the completion of a very successful fall invitational season.

Both Juniata’s A and B teams were invited to compete among the 20 teams facing off at the tournament. The Juniata A Team took home a trophy for placing second to Indiana University at Bloomington, Indiana. The B team finished with a 5-3 record at the tournament by defeating Pace University of New York in its final trial. Both teams will resume competition at University of California Irvine Mock Trial Tournament on Jan. 4-9, 2023.

“We played four challenging Invitational Tournaments this fall, and I am proud of our success,” said Juniata College Mock Trial Coach Attorney David Andrews ’74. “We are pleased that with our high National Ranking this year, we have been invited to compete in January at the University of California Irvine Tournament with Mock Trial Teams across the Country. “

Emerson Strawser ’25 of the A team and Juli DesRossiers ’26 of the B team each won an Outstanding Witness Award, and Cole Gross ’26 of the B team won an Outstanding Attorney Award.

Governed by the AMTA, Mock Trial is an academic competition in which students assume the roles of attorneys and witnesses in a trial. Teams compete against other colleges and universities, with no distinction between Divisions 1, 2, and 3. In competition, each team tries the case four times, twice as prosecution and twice as defense. All teams are given the same information, and witnesses must stick to the affidavit provided, but the ways different teams interpret the information highlight and challenge each member’s ability to adapt, problem-solve, and think on their feet.

This season’s case concerns an Independence Day plane crash in which a pilot deviated from the planned flight route and crashed into a mountainside. The pilot and a passenger, Morgan Felder, lost their lives in the tragedy. The passenger’s surviving spouse, Ari Felder, brought a negligence lawsuit. The case involves many possible factors for the crash, including pilot error, drug usage, the pilot’s medical condition, and even fireworks on the Fourth of July.

Teams compete against other colleges and universities. All teams are given the same information, and witnesses must stick to the affidavit provided, but the ways different teams interpret the information highlight and challenge each member’s ability to adapt, problem-solve, and think on their feet.

“After our break for exams and the holidays, we cannot wait to return to competition in January,” said Andrews.

Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.