U-High’s mock trial team participated in the state Mock Trial competition along with 40 other schools March 16-17 in Springfield. While they didn’t place in the top eight teams and couldn’t participate in the final trial, they used the competition as a way to connect with others and learn rather than simply as an opportunity to win.
Raven Reid, one of the three team co-captains, said state is a culmination of all the team’s work.
“State is a representation of all the trials and tribulations of what we’ve been through,” she said.
Raven explained she enjoys being around people who care just as much about Mock Trial as she does.
“I feel like Mock Trial is not really talked about as much as other extracurriculars, especially here at Lab, so state is a nice opportunity to get to know people that are also interested in the same thing as you are,” she said.
Celine Derroitte, one of the other co-captains, explained that because Lab’s Mock Trial team is relatively new, at competitions they aren’t expecting to win, they’re expecting to learn.
“We don’t go into it like, ‘We know we’re going to make the top eight!’ It’s about learning, having fun and, honestly, trying not to embarrass yourself,” she said.
Celine said that being a co-captain has changed her perspective on the work the team does.
“Being co-captain has been a lot more work than I anticipated. It was just never something I realized how much more you have to manage. But it’s also really rewarding and fun,” she said.
The team’s third co-captain is Sahana Unni, a Midway editor-in-chief who was not involved with this story.
Even though U-High didn’t qualify to be in the top eight teams, Raven explained that she’s proud of how far the team has come, especially all the effort and dedication that all the team members have displayed.
