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It was a big and historic win for Hamilton’s Mock Trial team as a successful outing at the Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS) resulted in a bid to the national Collegiate Mock Trial competition.

Despite a fierce challenge from Team Mother Nature, Hamilton Mock Trial teams prevailed in snowy Buffalo, capturing the regional tournament on Feb. 9 with both its A and B teams winning ballots to advance.

Hamilton’s Mock Trial team traveled to State College, Pa., and competed in Penn State’s 12th annual Happy Valley Invitational on Oct. 24 to 26. It was a challenging tournament with nationally-ranked teams and a great opportunity for Mock Trial members to practice their arguments and debate skills. This was the second tournament of the season for the team, and also the first competition for the majority of the first-year students on the team. It was a valuable experience for them, as they were able to finally compete and experience Mock Trial after two months of practice.

Hamilton College’s Mock Trial teams traveled to Lancaster, Pa., on March 23-25 to compete in the Opening Round Championships Series (ORCS), the second round of the American Mock Trial Association’s (AMTA) annual national tournament. This tournament was hosted by Elizabethtown College in the Lancaster County Courthouse, with 24 teams competing.

On Feb. 24 and 25 Hamilton’s two mock trial teams competed at SUNY Buffalo, in the Regional American Mock Trial Association (AMTA) tournament. Out of 20 different teams, the seven top scoring teams advance to the next round, the Opening Round Championship Series. Both Hamilton teams received bids to advance, with the Hamilton A team placing third and the Hamilton B team placing seventh.

Over the past two weekends (Jan. 20-21 and 27-28) Hamilton’s two mock trial teams have traveled near and far to compete against the best programs in the country. These two tournaments, held at Georgetown and Cornell, respectively, were the teams’ final opportunities to get hands-on practice before the “March Madness” style tournaments begin in February.

Last weekend (Nov. 4-6) Hamilton Mock Trial debuted its two teams and six of seven new members at Haverford College’s “Black Squirrel Invitational.”

Hamilton Mock Trial ended its 2016-17 competitive season at the Lancaster, Pa., Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS) competition on March 17 to 19. Hamilton was one of 24 teams at the competition, and only six teams advance to the national competition later this spring. Ultimately, Hamilton placed 7th, narrowly missing the opportunity to compete at the national level.

On Feb. 3rd to 5th Hamilton Mock Trial competed in the Regional American Mock Trial Association (AMTA) tournament at Pennsylvania State University. This was the first of three AMTA elimination tournaments that aim to bring together the best teams from all around the country. Hamilton placed third out of 24 teams, earning it a spot to the next AMTA tournament, Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS) in Lancaster, Pa., March 17-19.

When most students left campus for the holidays on Nov. 18, Hamilton’s Mock Trial teams suited up for a tournament at Cornell University (Nov 19-20). Among the competition were teams from some of the best mock trial programs in the Northeast region including the Ohio State University, Pennsylvania State University, Columbia University, and Rutgers University.