Interviewing our new coach: Harris Lichtenstein

Case Western Mock Trial is thrilled to announce that Harris Lichtenstein, alumni of WashU St. Louis Mock Trial ‘22, will be joining our coaching staff! To celebrate Harris’ transition from a WashU Bear to a CWRU Spartan, we asked him a couple of questions to introduce him to the full CWRUMT family. 

What do you do for a living?

I am working at a consulting and market research firm right here in Cleveland. 

What’s your favorite thing about Mock Trial?

Without a doubt the people. Only a certain type of person would voluntarily give up their weekend to wear a suit and run around being a fake attorney—and I love that type of person. 

How would you describe your coaching style?

My coaching style can be best described as tough but fair with the requirement of complete honesty and trust between myself and the student.

What’s your Zodiac Sign? 

Really? Ugh, fine. Scorpio (cue the “omg that makes soooooo much sense” lines).

What roles did you typically play when you were competing? 

My main roles were P opener dealing with experts and playing a dumb southern witness. 

Favorite Mock Memory from undergrad? 

Going to Nationals my senior year and getting one last chance to compete with my four-year family, WUMT. 

Hype song? 

Dance and Cry, by Mother Mother (I have many, many more)

What’s the wildest thing that’s ever happened in a trial you were in? 

My freshman year at ORCS I went to voir dire an expert witness and began by flailing my arm out and loudly exclaiming, “Doctor, let’s talk about puberty!” That was a moment the team literally never let down and it was by far the goofiest thing I ever did. 

If you were an AMTA witness, which one would you be?  

Remy Mouchard. A goofy man who loves his beignets. 

Describe your style as a mocker with three adjectives. 

Expressive, folksy, dynamic. 

What are you most excited about this coming season? 

Getting to meet all the CWRU Mockers and being able to contribute to my new Cleveland community!

Now We Here

Brad Ouambo

In a previous post, I stated Otto started from the bottom, "but there can be no debate, he's here now." From March 31-April 2, 2022, Otto and Case Western's Law School mock trial team ventured to the National Trial Competition in Fort Worth Texas. This year, two Case Western teams qualified for Nationals, earning both spots from their regionals. Otto's teammates included Elena Gutbroad and Andrew Thompson. The Case teams were coached by Brad Ouambo, Lauren Tuttle, and Sean Sweeny, who were the last trio from Case Western Law School to travel to Nationals.

From the first round, it was clear Otto's team was not going to have it easy. They faced off against Berkeley, one of the top trial schools in the country. While she was not competing on the side of the case, Maddie Driscoll of Ohio State ('20) was making her law school nationals debut. Otto's team would go on to face Texas A&M and Northwestern in the preliminary rounds. Of the 30 teams competing, only 8 would move on to the quarter finals. With a record of 3 wins and 7 ballots (out of a possible 3 wins and 9 ballots) Otto's team advanced to the quarter finals, becoming the first Case Western team to do so. Their opponent? Berkeley...again.

Like Case Western (and many other teams) Berkeley had two teams at Nationals. This Berkeley team was older and more experienced than the one Otto had faced before. This team also included Top Gun Runner Up Jenna Forster. This was a close round with Berkeley playing clean and precise mock trial, while Otto's team aggressively sought after points, sacrificing cleanliness for the hard-hitting points. The result? A nail-biting 3 ballots to 2 ballots in favor of Case Western! Otto moved on to the semi-final round. His opponent? UCLA.

To say UCLA is a stacked program is an understatement. They had sent two teams to the top 8 and were the only school to retain two teams in the semifinals. UCLA 1, the team Otto faced, included U Chicago AMTA alum Regina Campbell, who would go on to win the Best Oral Advocate Award from the tournament. Despite a valiant effort, UCLA pulled out the win. The final round was UCLA 1 v. UCLA 2 with UCLA 1 declared the winner. As a result, the only team Otto lost to all tournament was the National Champions.

I tell Otto's story not to simply gloat about one of my first students, but to highlight how some of the biggest success stories can come from the most unlikely places. At Nationals, people were coming up to me and other coaches telling us that they were rooting for our team. Case Western was the Cinderella story of this Nationals by not only sweeping its regional and sending two teams to Nationals, but by defeating some of the strongest teams along the way to become one of the top 4 teams in the country. This success story started in a little known undergraduate mock trial program that has been hustling its way up right alongside its coach. And like its coach, we started from the bottom but despite any setbacks we may face, we are definitely still here.

CWRUMT TURNS GAMER MODE ON

Zoe Swenson, ‘23

Way back in 2020, when Case Western sent two teams to ORCS it was a shock–perhaps most notably to the team of mostly freshmen who did it. In 2021 when Case Western sent two teams to ORCS, it was a delight–the newcomers on that team were happy to get the ORCS experience of their predecessors and continue their season past February. But in 2021, Case Western sending two teams through to ORCS wasn’t a shock or a delight–it was an expectation. 

Not just an expectation from our coaching staff either. Prominent analysts in the Mock Trial community placed it as a likely possibility that CWRU A and B would be at the DeKalb ORCS come February. One account, MockAnalysisIsMyDrug, said “Overall, Case Western as a program is trending upwards.” High praise, but praise that came with pressure. Was Case Western Reserve University really ready to cement their place as a competitive program from top to bottom? Were we really ready to be “a program on the rise”?

14 ballots later, that question was answered. CWRU A and B have done it again, qualifying two teams to the Opening Championship Series. B team went a record of 6 wins and 2 losses, only dropping close ballots to UC Davis A, a Nationals returner who went on to win the regional. A team went undefeated, going a perfect 8 and 0–the first time any team has ever done so in CWRUMT recorded history. In all the victories, individual competitors on each team still managed to distinguish themselves. Senior captain Nicholas Cosmo ‘22 picked up his sixth award of the season as a defense attorney–the next in what we hope will be a continuing series of long overdue accolades for the heart and soul of our program. The best part of Mr. Cosmo’s continued success is that if he wins enough awards that they no longer fit under his name on the website, it will be his job to figure out how to fix that (because he is also our wonderful Vice President of Communications). Zoe Swenson ‘23 channeled the power of #thelegacy Round 3, and picked up an award as a prosecution attorney while quoting the immortal words of Kyle Parker ‘20 on rebuttal, reminding the jury that “they saw a felon…but ignored the facts.” But it was first-year mocker Cole Prieto ‘24 who perhaps had the most outstanding weekend of anyone. Cole awarded with a perfect 20 ranks on the Prosecution, making him the top witness in all of Regional 4-H. 

The significance of this accomplishment did not go unnoticed. In the words of B team Captain Benjamin Lawrence Chanenson ‘22, “We are the only team in Ohio to send two teams to ORCS in the past two years. Other teams in Ohio lack depth.” Coaches Imokhai Okolo and Bradley Ouambo, distinguished alumnus of other Ohio teams, could not be reached for comment on these allegations. Regardless, stay tuned next weekend as CWRUMT faces their greatest hurdle yet–the DeKalb Opening Round Championship Series. 

We all scream for C team

Zoe Swenson, ‘23

On February 11th, CWRU C prepared to enter the belly of the beast.  They'd been assigned to Regional 2-B, one of the hardest of this year's regionals, and prospects looked bleak. Prepping for an earlier weekend than either A or B and thrown off-balance by a last-second restack, it seemed impossible for this spunky team of mockers--eight of whom were in their very first year--to come out of this weekend victorious. 

But, as I find myself reiterating time and time again in these editorial interludes, Case Western Mock Trial is increasingly capable of "thinking beyond the possible." C team left this weekend with a record of 4 wins and 4 losses, particularly impressive given the fact that those losses came from not just difficult rounds, but being paired up against two top-50 programs. While this record is in and of itself remarkable, it doesn’t fully capture the thrill of the weekend. When the program learned Saturday evening that for round 4 CWRU C had been paired against Ohio State A–a team that this author will admit to thinking is pretty darn good at mock trial–in a matchup where both teams (who were at this point, 4-2 and 4-2) had the chance to knock the other out of a place at ORCS, the tension was palpable. And sitting in that round, watching a team of entirely underclassmen hold their own against Ohio State A was like watching the first page in an entirely new chapter of CWRUMT history. 

While each member had many, many shining moments, I'll save the 2000 word essay on how well I think everyone did and give you a bright moment from each competitor--a highlight reel, if you will. Robin Ghotra '25 made fighting on cross into an exact science, and absolutely eviscerated anyone who had the misfortune of being paired against him. Russell Low '25--a former alternate with two weeks worth of prep under his belt in terms of attorney experience--won four different objection arguments against Northern Illinois University B. Nidhi Byragoni '25 was forced to play not one but two different hastily prepared backup witnesses on the defense, but sold them like she’d been running them all season. Meera MacMullen ‘25 played a charming character judges loved–almost as much as Kiran Singh hates bad fashion choices. Will Stappenbeck ‘24 mastered the art of crossing the crying witness on his very first go, and maintained his skills with top-tier digital demos from his tenure on the 2021 Nationals team. Alex Wang ‘25 performed a masterful expert cross examination, and in closing informed the jury of the many things that can happen when you put a cat in a box with a mouse. Ruth Alvarez ‘24 gave stellar closing argument after stellar closing argument, managing to wow the judges despite having a background that fully made it look like she was closing from a prison cell. In a program that has produced some pretty spectacular openers,  Alexandra Gioukaris ‘25, proved that she deserves to be counted amongst them. Her opening in rounds two and four against upperclassmen nationals competitors let everyone in the round know that CWRU C wasn’t going to be anything but formidable. Ani Raghuvir ‘25, captivated the jury with an earnest and believable portrayal of firefighter Alex Silva–and then subsequently smacked down on a few crosses. Shreeya Lingham ‘25 pulled off a lovely and credible expert portrayal, never looking biased despite having to agree to lines like “although I am not involved in the case and have reviewed no facts or evidence, I can tell you this was certainly nothing more than a tragic accident.” At the end of the weekend, Ruth Alvarez and Meera MacMullen received well-deserved all-regional awards. 

Of course, behind every talented mocker is several talented coaches. Credit is also due to C team coaches Corey Debelak and Mark Wang ‘19, who both put a tremendous amount of work into creating the monster mockers this squad has become, as well as Enya Eetickal ‘23 and Prateek Dullur ‘23, who stepped in Saturday night to lead a last minute midnight prep session before the Ohio State round 4 showdown.

As an aside, I feel it's important to note just what this experience was like for everyone else in the program. When I joined this team, we were coming off of a year where none of Case Western's 3 teams had made it out of Regionals--or made it even close enough to get on the open bid list. To go from believing my freshman year that maybe, if I was lucky, I'd get to go to ORCS once or twice, to watching my program's C team of entirely underclassmen competitors pair up against one of the best teams in the country and holding my breath through the break because I was watching a close round is indescribable. This C team's competitive season might be over. They might have more to learn before they're ready to turn a close round like the one they had against OSU into a clean sweep. But you can be damn sure that this isn't the last you'll be hearing of them, and every team in Ohio should be shaking in their boots at that fact. 

Started from the Bottom

Bradley Ouambo

In the fall of 2015, I just completed my first set of tryouts as the coach of CWRU mock trial. When I thought everything was said and done, a student Shireen Batia '18 informed me that one of her friends was interested in trying out. Even though it was after the deadline, I agreed to let the kid try out. His name was Athavan Balendran ("Otto") '18. I won't lie. His tryout was unremarkable. He wasn't particularly bad, but he wasn't particularly good either. In the end I thought "what could it hurt" and accepted him on the spot.

The next time I interacted with Otto was at the hotel the night before he would compete for the first time at the Spartan Throwdown. He seemed lost to say the least, but the first-time attorney seemed interested in the tips I had to offer even though I was not his direct coach. Just as I was starting to think, hey maybe this kid is alright, the next story I hear about him is that he went to a tournament and completely forgot to bring his suit. He would go on to compete at St. Bonaventure with Walmart slacks and a cardigan that sorta looked like it could be a suit.

I did not expect to deal with Otto again that year, but as regionals were rolling around his coach Lauren Tuttle told me that Otto is actually a pretty good public speaker. She then informed me that Otto is playing a very fun witness, Tracey Minnetos (the "y" is silent). After regionals, I decided to move Otto from the B team to the A team and Ms. Tuttle borrowed a Drake line to describe his progress saying "he started from the bottom, now he's here." On A, he opened on Defense and played the carefree workout bro brother of Chase Covington, Tracey Minnetos. We got clobbered at ORCS, losing to Michigan and Yale (who would go on to become national champions) and finished with dismal record on 0-7-1.

Fast forward six years later. Otto now coaches the B team, is a 3L at Case Law, and is going to Nationals for the first time. Over the past weekend Otto competed at the National Trial Competition (NTC) Regional for the second time. Last year his season was cut short after losing to Akron in the final round. This year, it was a total victory. But that victory did not come easy.

Otto and his teammates Andrew Thompson and Elena Gutbrod were able to win rounds 1 and 2 and had a record of 2 wins and 5 ballots. Theirs was the best record of the tournament going into Round 3. Here is where things got tricky. CWRU was Prosecution against Michigan who was led by a former Yale Mock Trial national finalist Andrew Delvecchio. This round was a throwback of sorts as Delvecchio's theme ("they have the wrong brother and are telling you the wrong story") mirrored that of Yale's 2016 Nationals winning theme from Otto's first year of mock trial. After a difficult round and a misplaced impeachment, Michigan swept CWRU 3 ballots to 0.

Otto's team was certainly down but not out. Their record of 2 wins and 5 ballots was enough to advance to the knockout stage. In round 4, CWRU went defense against a different Michigan team. Just as the sides wrapped up opening statements the tournament took a dramatic turn. The tournament administrators realized they paired the teams incorrectly. As such, the final round would be dependent on the number of wins and ballots won and not a simple knockout elimination as originally planned. This meant to guarantee a position in the final round Otto not only needed to win, but sweep. That is exactly what he did. Otto's team moved on to the final round with 3 wins and 8 ballots to their name.

Here the drama continues to mount. Otto's team came face to face with Delvecchio once again. This time, Otto was defense. The round was notable in evidentiary battles between him and Delvecchio. At motions in limine Otto successfully moved to suppress the defendant's confession to the police, which was a major victory for his case. His partner Elena gave a flawless execution of her open that included lines borrowed from Yale's 2016 Nationals open. Little did Delvecchio know, Otto was also influenced by the likes of Yale. It was only fitting that the theory and the themes that influenced Otto so greatly in his first year of mock trial will be the keys to his victory in his last year of competing. Crosses went off without a hitch, but then came Otto's witness. At first things seemed like they were going well but just as the direct was wrapping up, his witness went off track, handing the prosecution valuable evidence to undermine his case. Otto did what he could with sharp redirect questions and an epic close but the question was would it be enough? It was. The ballot total is unknown and the point differential is still a mystery but the tournament officials announced that both Case Western teams were advancing to Nationals.

Otto wasn't born as an obviously awesome mocker. I didn't see his potential when he first came through. What makes him special is that when he decides he wants to be good at something, he becomes one of the very best. His law school mock trial career has seen him face off against some of the most successful undergraduate mockers and he's always managed to come out on top. Otto certainly started at the bottom from a mock trial standpoint, but there can be no debate, he's here now.

Only one ‘L’ in Engelhardt Throwdown

Zoe Swenson, ‘23

This weekend, Case Western Reserve University Mock Trial returned from the long winter break to prove that there’s nothing that can hamper their ability to FB and GB. No one could say that the odds were not stacked against them. At Luther, CWRUMT fielded a team that was not A, B, or C, but instead an amalgamation of mockers from all three teams who geared up for this tournament after three meetings that could truly only generously be described as practices. As the sun rose on January 14th 2022, CWRUMT’s prospects seem bleak. The lack of preparations, the absurdity of our defense theory, and the knowledge that all competitions before regionals would be a return to the depressing world of Zoom Mock weighed on our competitors as heavily as the weight of fact rests on the prosecution’s counsel bench. Nevertheless, this band of miscreant mockers, bye-bust besties, Luther losers, managed to defy the odds and come away with not just two individual awards, not just the Spirit of AMTA, but a 7-1 record and a second-place finish. Each and every member of this team truly was #thelegacy this weekend. 

Alex Wang ‘25 gave two terrific closing arguments that seized on every weakness and doubt in the state’s case, and two cross examinations that proved he was, without doubt, the Alpha Alex. Ananya Shashi ‘25 had her very first outing as an attorney, and literally no one who competed against her would know it. She performed phenomenally as a middle attorney and exposed every Kiran Singh in the Luther field as the lying liars they are. Arselan Rekhif ‘24 endured an eleven-minute cross examination where his likable demeanor and subtle promotions of Trading Tobin LLC kept a single bad fact from landing effectively. Annie Castegnero ‘25 crossed a Maddox Vaughn in a moment so iconic that it will remain a meme in St. Olaf Mock Trial’s lexicon for generations to come. Gabrielle Vaccaro ‘25 made an unreasonable and upsetting quantity of good objections for a freshman who has been doing mock trial for half a year. Russell Low ‘25 gave a relaxed, approachable and reliable expert portrayal so well executed and captivating that it swung a tight round four in CWRU’s favor. Maddy Fox ‘25 contained multitudes this weekend, somehow believably pulling off both a lovable, credible character witness and hostile alternate suspect. She never failed to bring an exciting zoom profile picture into the mix during comments. Prateek Dullur ‘23 gave an open so captivating that he managed to convince two different judges that ‘three eyewitnesses three much doubt’ theory fit under the label ‘reasonable.’ Also he said he slept in a dog bed on direct, a fact which will forever be preserved in our memory of this tournament. Zoe Swenson ‘23 showed two different fake demonstratives at the Captains meetings she attended—one of which was literally a bottle of ketchup–but Nick Cosmo ‘22 smiled through her nonsense with such kindness and good spirits that the team managed to win the Spirit of AMTA–an award given to the team demonstrating the most kindness and civility (editor’s note: while my smile was surely determinative to some degree, the SPAMTA award was a team effort that everyone should take some credit for, even Zoe and her ketchup shenanigans). Both also received individual awards–Zoe with 20 ranks on the Prosecution and Cosmo with 18 as Alex Silva. 

Case Western Reserve University Mock Trial would also like to formally issue gratitude to Zoe’s roommate Kelsey ‘23, who performed a tremendous act of service on behalf of the team by waking her up 15 minutes before the round started. 

Nationals at Last

On March 14, 2021 Case Western earned a bid to the National Championship Tournament for the first time in ten years. The members of this team include Emerson McGinnis ‘21, Max Liu ‘21, Nick Vitello ‘21, Nick Cosmo ‘22, Nick Micic ‘22, Prateek Dullur ‘23, and, Zoe Swenson ‘23,. The team was coached by Brad Ouambo and Imokhai Okolo.

Over the past several seasons, Case Mock Trial has made going to Nationals its explicit goal. Unfortunately, each year the program fell short of that goal. In 2019, the program failed to make it out of regionals for the first time since 2014. Undaunted by the setback, the program members regrouped and returned in the 2020 season stronger than ever. The A team of that year narrowly missed Nationals due to a tiebreaker. The 2020 season then saw us graduate the class that was most responsible for creating a winning culture in the program. Normally, these graduations would lead to a rebuilding year…not for us. The foundations of the 2020 season set the program up for further success in the 2021 season.

This is because the 2020 season did not just have a talented senior class, but it brought along a zealously dedicated freshman class that was part of CWRU’s first B team to compete at ORCS. As these sophomores took the reigns in the 2021 season they insisted that they could make a Nationals run too. In addition to these sophomores, the recruitment for this season saw similarly dedicated and talented first years join our ranks. Two of whom, Nick Vitello and Prateek Dullur, were on Team 1234 when it earned the Nationals bid. Furthermore, the program had seasoned veterans who had nearly earned a bid to Nationals the year before. The combination of new exuberant energy and driven veterans created the conditions for Team 1234 to finally break through the ORCS barrier with a record of 9-2-1.

To get to Nationals, Team 1234 had to compete with Rochester A, University of Tennesse Chattenooga, Muhlenburg College, and Arizona State University B. Along the way, first-year mocker Prateek Dullur won an All ORCS attorney award and witness veteran Nick Micic won an All - ORCS witness award.

The program was so deep that the B Team, had a winning record of 6-5-1 at ORCS. This B team’s ORCS record ranks behind only Team 1234 in 2021, the 2011 Nationals Team, and last year’s A Team that narrowly missed Nationals. Additionally, Ben Chanenson ‘23 and Vishu Chandrasekhar ‘23 both won All ORCS attorney awards.

On April 16, 2021 Team 1234 will compete at the National Championship Tournament.

B TEAM

Guest post by Enya Eettickal, ‘23

Over the years, CWRU's teams have developed very particular... reputations. Last year's B team was no exception.

They were truly chaotic (and maybe a bit dysfunctional at times but we don't have to talk about it) but an absolute force to be reckoned with: a dark horse, if you will. Being our first B team to compete at ORCs, they will forever be a part of Case's mock trial history: a legendary legacy for some seniors and the enticing origin story of some quirky underclassmen.

Some might think such a B team would never exist again. And maybe that might've preserved someone's sanity.

But I'm here to tell you that this year's B team is ready to challenge that!

Lively and rambunctious, this year's B team is packed with unique personalities and many hot takes, but is just as chaotic as ever.

This team is comprised of Nick Vitello '21, a latecomer to the mock trial scene but wasting no time in making their name known as a Plaintiff closer, Prateek Dullur '23, an expert specialist and Defense closer with much ambition, Enya Eettickal '23, a double sided opener expanding beyond her witnessing abilities, Analyse Claude '22, Queen Bee and your Favorite British Witness, Ruth Alvarez '24, a charismatic witness who continues to be accused of murder, Marlenny Gonzalez '24, a master of channeling her own energy into her roles, Ussaid Ishaq '24, the chill expert vibing on the stand, Alex Siegal '24, a "broadway star" with a knack for accents, Rufus Black '24, a previous attorney who's ready to "come in clutch" as a witness, Will Stappenbeck '24, who's singlehandedly the reason our exhibits function during round, and the lovely Savannah Gazda '24, who continues to aid this team even though she definitely could be spending time with the much cooler softball team.

As we know, every chaotic team needs a chaotic leader, and the head coach with the honor of that role is Athavan Balendran. But our lovely and wonderful assistant coaches Corey Debelak and Halle Rose work to balance out the chaos while guiding us along our mock trial adventure.

This B team is strong and has much unlocked potential. What new challenges will this B team face on the road to regionals? Who knows! But all we do know is that it'll certainly be one wild ride.

Oh My God Finally

On January 20th, 2021, Case Western's Mock Trial team issued a challenge. "either enter the courtroom with enough competitive force to give us a losing record, or lose enough that we can actually place at a tournament." We would like to thank Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Cincinnati, and Florida State University for rising to that challenge, and extend particular gratitude for letting us achieve the latter, not the former. Yes, Case Western's A team has finally gone a record other than 5-3, placed at a tournament, and left with an award. The drought is over, the curse broken, and the gauntlet overcome. Cool beans, to say the least.

This weekend was not only an eventful one for Case Western's A team. Case B finished with an impressive record of 4-4, made even more impressive by the fact that it came at such a high level tournament with a team of such relatively new mockers. For reference, last year's B team--a team which made program history by helping get two bids to ORCs, and a team which contained four times as many senior mockers as this year's B--went an abysmal 0-6-2 at the 2020 Hoosier Hoedown. To walk out of Indiana with four ballots (not to mention without killing any basketball players mid-round) is a sign of this team's incredible potential and the great things in store for them.

If you're a believer in the zodiac you probably noticed that this weekend was a big one for Earth Signs. Zoe Swenson (Taurus), Nick Vitello (Virgo) and Prateek Dullar (unapologetic Capricorn) all received individual awards distinguishing their performance as fake attorneys. This puts Earth Nation on track to win the internal house points competition, a competition second only to Great Chicago Fire in terms of competitiveness (editor’s note: the Water signs, however, continue to dominate in the courtroom as they do generally in life)

All jokes aside, we are incredibly grateful to have competed against such stellar teams, and no round this weekend presented did anything but challenge our competitors to their fullest, pushing us to develop the skills we'll be using in the courtroom at regionals. We thank Indiana University Mock Trial for their hard work in pulling off truly the best invitational tournament we've seen all season, and wish everyone we saw this weekend the best of luck at regionals.

A Team Really Tired of Going 5-3

Zoe Swenson, ‘23

CWRU's A team this year began their season with an energy of focused effort and dedication, ready to take on the season with a win at their first tournament, Carnegie Mellon's "Swear Me In Scotty" invitational. While the weekend ended with a tightly fought round but close loss to the eventual winners of the tournament, Juniata A and an ultimate record of 5-3, the members of A team were no strangers to overcoming defeat and spent the next few weeks refining crosses, witnesses, and theory in preparation for their next entry in the competitive season.

That next competition would come in the (digital) courtrooms of California, where Case Western would go toe to toe with the teams of UC Davis' Cowtown Classic. Anxious to win one of Cowtown's coveted cow-themed team awards, Case Western competed with drive and vigor and left day one with a perfect undefeated record. Day Two of Cowtown unfortunately got the best of Case Western, leaving them with another close loss, honorable mention, and record of 5-3.

Now was the time for Case Western to roll up their sleeves and get to work. Taking the winter break as an opportunity to push their team to new limits, Case Western revised or rewrote almost all themes, roles, and theories in an effort to push themselves to the next level. With the new changes made, Case Western walked into Michigan State's Wolverine Classic ready to grapple with some of the best teams in the country. And grapple they did, taking on some of the best teams in the country, like UC Irvine, Rutgers, and Cal Berkeley. Yet while the battle was hard fought, Case Western left Michigan much the same as they entered it, with the not unimpressive but by this point certainly irritating record of 5-3.

In the words of head coach Bradley Ouambo, "5-3 is the enemy oh my god."

We hope this record serves as an open invitation to the teams competing at next weekend's Hoosier Hoedown, Case Western's last invitational outing this competitive season, to either enter the courtroom with enough competitive force to give them a losing record, or lose enough that we can actually place at a tournament.

CWRU Mock Trial revives the $avage Six

This post begins a series showcasing the unstacked teams for this year. We’re starting off with Team Blue, also known as the $avage Six 2.0, authored by Zoe Swenson ‘23.

In a golden era of Mock Trial--before zoom, before materially invented fact, before AMTA's new time limits--there was one unstoppable CWRU pre-stack team. The Savage Six, forged in the fires of the low retention rate of the 2017-18 season, blazed a trail of victory the likes of which has never been seen (actually they only went like 10-6 but whatever). But when CWRU Mock Trial needed them most, they vanished. At least, until Bradley Ouambo and Imokhai Okolo, prestigious coaches and known enablers of Mock Trial nonsense, decided to cause chaos and create a second Savage Six. For better or worse, these intrepid six are tasked with upholding the legacy and (perhaps more importantly) not crashing and burning under the weight of two charges, three theories, ten witnesses, and six statements. 

Carrying the torch is an all-new, all different team of CWRU's best and brightest. The team is made up of Vishu Chandrasekhar ‘23, expert extraordinaire and blossoming defense attorney,  Zoe Swenson ‘23, former prosecution opener turned loose from the world of guaranteed crosses, exact memorization, and non-argumentative statements, Ben Chanenson ‘23, the most chaotic opening attorney CWRU Mock Trial has ever seen, Enya Eettickal ‘23, all-star defendant finally wielding her tremendous skills on both sides of cross examination, Emerson McGinnis ‘21, a true jack of all trades of a witness (seriously--expert, hostile, emotional, character--this girl can do it all), and Max Liu ‘21, former CWRU Mock president but forever our fearless leader. 

What havoc will the new Savage Six unleash not just on the program, but the world? We don't know for sure, but we wouldn't like to be the teams at Wake Forest who have to find out. 

Black Lives Matter

Case Western Mock Trial stands with the Black Lives Matter movement, and with the Black community that has been repeatedly harmed by systemic racism and police brutality. As participants in an activity based on the practice of law, we recognize that we have the responsibility to acknowledge the inequities of the criminal justice system. These inequities are directly responsible for the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and countless other Black individuals, including Tamir Rice, a member of our own Cleveland community. It is therefore crucial that we speak out, and commit to educating ourselves about the institutional oppression of Black people in our country and fighting for change. We have also linked resources so that you can join us in learning, donating, signing petitions, protesting, and advocating for justice. Now, as always, Black lives matter.

Annual Banquet

This past Monday the CWRU Mock Trial team celebrated our annual banquet. Big thank you to all of our members for their passion and dedication this past year. Special congratulations to our three senior members Katie, Athavan, and Maria for successful mock trial careers! We're already looking forward to next years case! 

2017-2018 COMPETITIVE STACK ANNOUNCED

After each of our three unstacked teams competing at their first tournament then once more at our very own Tenth Annual Spartan Throwdown, we have fully stacked A, B, and C teams at last. Without further ado, the teams are as follows: 

A - Coaches: Bear and Brad
Athavan Balendran
Emily Ahlstrom
Kyle Parker
Rocky Kaftol
Sanjna Arvind
Sarah Thomas
Sneha Darbha 

B - Coaches: Logan and Imokhai
Anna Ashley
Halle Rose
Katlyn Barron
Luke Dotson
Max Liu
Maria Oldenburg
Mark Wang
Natalie Perry

C - Coaches: Brett and Corey
Aliah Lawson
Amulya Annasamudram
Ann Jung
Jeremy Rodrigues
John Libert
Kate Schultheis
Katie Toledo
Katherine Yan
Nate Brinkley

There you have it, another exciting step on the Road to MN!

FIRST STEPS ON THE ROAD TO MN

This past weekend, we here at Case Western Mock Trial accepted fourteen baby mockers to join our family. Some have mock trial experience, some are new and ready for moulding, but together they represent the strongest and most competitive applicant pool our program has seen in years. After a very successful bootcamp to give them the rundown on rules of evidence and how mock trial works, our entire program went out bowling to bond and get to know each other, and really get the ball rolling (pun intended) on the Road to Minneapolis.

We've also determined our unstacked team distribution for preseason this year. The teams for the first two tournaments are as follows:

Team Reputation
Tournaments: Ohio State Oct. 21/22; Spartan Throwdown Oct. 28/29
Coaches: Brett and Corey
Members:
Kyle Parker
Anna Ashley
Luke Dotson
Katherine Toledo
Jeremy Rodrigues
Sneha Darbha
Amulya Annasamudram
Aliah Lawson

Team 2
Tournaments: Michigan State Oct. 14/15; Spartan Throwdown Oct. 28/29
Coaches: Bear and Logan
Members:
Sanjna Arvind
Ann Jung
Maria Oldenburg
John Libert
Natalie Perry
Nate Brinkle
Max Liu
Kate Schultheis
Katherine Yan
Katelyn Baron

Team $avage
Tournaments: Michigan State Oct. 14/15; Spartan Throwdown Oct. 28/29
Coaches: Brad and Imokhai
Members:
Sarah Thomas
Athavan Balendran
Emily Ahlstrom
Mark Wang
Rocky Kaftol
Halle Rose
Ethan Bo

We're excited to see the new heights our program will rise to achieve this year, and we're more than ready to put in our blood, sweat, and tears on the Road. To Minneapolis.

INTERVIEWING OUR NEW ASSISTANT COACH: IMOKHAI OKOLO

We here at Case Mock Trial are excited to announce that Imokhai Okolo, a law student at the University of Akron, will be joining us as an assistant coach for the 2017-2018 season! To celebrate Imokhai joining the family, we asked him a few questions. Read the full interview below:

What do you do?
Imokhai: I'm a 1L law student at the University of Akron.

Where did you go for undergrad?
Imokhai: I went to Miami University in Ohio.

What is your favorite thing about mock trial?
Imokhai: Definitely the family aspect of mock trial. You get to build a family, travel the country with your friends, and have fun in college.

What roles did you mostly do when you were competing?
Imokhai: I was an opening attorney and a character witness.

What are you most excited about for this upcoming season?
Imokhai: Really coaching in general; it'll be good to be in a different role not competing but coaching.

How would you describe your coaching style?
Imokhai: Dedicated. High expectations. Brutal honesty. And just fun.

What are some of your long-term career aspirations?
Imokhai: I'd like to be a litigator and then eventually a judge.

Rapid Fire Section:

Bowties or neckties? 
Imokhai: Bowties.

Describe your style as a mock trialer in three adjectives.
Imokhai: Casual, fun, entertaining.

Black suits or navy? 
Imokhai: Navy.

Interviewing Our New Assistant Coach: Logan Stetzer

We here at Case Mock Trial are excited to announce that Logan Stetzer, a CWRU alumni and former mocker, will be joining us as the other of our two new assistant coaches for the 2017-2018 season! To celebrate Logan (re)joining the family, we asked him a few questions. Read the full interview below:

What do you do for a living? 
Logan: Marketing Editor at S/P Group - I develop marketing strategies, content, and train employees to interact with our larger clients with more finesse.

Where did you go for undergrad? 
Logan: Case Western Reserve University 12'

What was your time at Case Western like? 
Logan: Very fulfilling. I made a lot of friends that I still see regularly as I get older. I also keep finding my way back on to campus in some capacity.

What is your favorite thing about mock trial? 
Logan: Cross examinations. There's nothing better than going up against the other team during a round and not knowing exactly what will happen.

What roles did you mostly do when you were in Mock Trial? 
Logan: Witnesses at first. Attorney once I had more experience.

What are you most excited about for this upcoming season? 
Logan: I'm excited for the new case and getting a chance to meet some new faces on the team!

How would you describe your coaching style? 
Logan: Dangerous...kidding. I like to take an a very interactive approach by asking my team tons of questions during practices. It is very important that the team knows not only what to do, but WHY we do certain things. Knowing the "why's" will give you an edge over the competition!

Rapid Fire Section:

Bowties or neckties? 
Logan: Neckties.

Describe your style as a mock trialer in three adjectives.
Logan: Creative, Precise, and Preemptive.

Black suits or navy? 
Logan: Navy. We're not FBI agents.

Interviewing our New Assistant Coach: Corey Debelak

We're happy to announce that Corey Debelak, a law student here at CWRU, will be joining us as one of our two new assistant coaches for the 2017-2018 season! Stay tuned for the reveal of other new assistant coach next week! To celebrate Corey joining the family, we asked her a few questions. Read the full interview below:

What do you do here at Case Western?
Corey: I am half-way through the JD/MBA program.

Where did you go for undergrad?
Corey: I went to Ohio State.

What is your favorite thing about mock trial?
Corey: I love being on a team working toward a common goal. I also enjoy the analytical process of dissecting a case to determine the opposing side’s weak points.

What roles did you mostly do when you were competing?
Corey: I have played a range of roles, but I tended to specialize as expert witnesses.

What are you most excited about for this upcoming season?
Corey: I am really excited to get back to the format and style of undergrad Mock Trial. There is an exciting challenge to making the most of a closed-universe problem.

How would you describe your coaching style?
Corey: I see myself more as a guide than a dictator; I feel that competitors should be making their parts their own, rather than being handed “the strategy” or “the answer”. One of the most exciting parts of Mock Trial is the flexibility inherent in the competition structure. Competitors should be able to use that flexibility to make their parts their own.

What are some of your long-term career aspirations?
Corey: That depends entirely on how long-term and how realistic my aspirations. I am interested in business law, and I can see myself fitting in well in an in-house council position. I’ve always found something very appealing in judgeships, though, so if someone wanted to make me a federal judge, I wouldn’t turn it down (hint, hint, Mr. Senator)!

Rapid Fire Section:

Ponytails or buns?
Corey: Buns!

Describe your style as a mocker in three adjectives.
Corey: Meticulous, Cerebral, Vicious.

Pencil skirts or suit pants?
Corey: Pencil skirts.

NEW EXECUTIVE BOARD ELECTED

We're excited to announce our newly-elected executive board for the 2017-2018 season:

President: Sanjna Arvind
Vice President of Internal Affairs and Recruitment: Anna Ashley
Vice President of Finance: Libby Schubert
Vice President of Communications: Kyle Parker
Tournament Directors: Sarah Thomas and Emily Ahlstrom

We're looking forward to another great season!

ORCS Team Announced

After months of competing, we have decided on the team that will represent us at the Hamilton ORCS. 

Coaches: Brad Ouambo and Marc "Bear" Walters

Competitors: 
Ren Weeden
Katie Laird
Athavan Balendran
Sanjna Arvind
Sarah Thomas
Kyle Parker
Libby Schubert
Rocky Kaftol