By Hannah Gordon
News Assignment Editor
For the first time in St. Bonaventure history, the Mock Trial team won their regional tournament and is headed to the national competition.
Ten students competed at the State University of New York College at Buffalo with guidance from their adviser, Steven Nuttall, professor of philosophy. Members of the team said the win was unexpected, but they were excited to participate despite winning or losing.
“It was definitely a nice surprise for us to end with such a great victory,” Alex Noguerola, junior political science major, said. “I knew the team had great potential to do well, and this just shows how the team has worked tediously and the effort they have put in.”
The work the team put in was extensive, according to Jessica Ungaro, sophomore sociology major.
“We practice twice a week, sometimes for over three hours a night, and have additional meetings outside of this to ensure that we are prepared for whatever may be thrown at us,” Ungaro said. “We have come a long way since the beginning of the season, and I could not ask for a better group of teammates and friends to share this experience with me.”
The rest of the journey wasn’t easy either, according to Sebastian Bellm, sophomore finance major.
“The year was filled with a lot of highs and lows, ranging from finishing poorly at invitationals to becoming number one at regionals,” Bellm said. “The team matured tremendously throughout the year, and we have exceeded our expectations.”
Exceeding those standards didn’t come easy, according to Allie Perl, senior international studies major.
“The journey to regionals was filled with many late nights, theoretical debates, and preparation,” Perl said. “The amount of effort and time put in by all of the members was spectacular and really paid off.”
Perl said the team worked hard, and their effort rewarded them highly, especially for her and Nick Hillman, senior political science major.
“My favorite part was being able to walk down and receive the trophy with Nick and bringing it back to our teammates,” Perl said. “This is the greatest achievement this team has ever won, and it feels great to have made history.”
Noguerola said the road to making history has become a bonding experience for the team.
“The team developed quite a bit from the beginning of the season to now,” Noguerola said. “We went to a number of tournaments throughout the year to help prepare us, and we were able to see what worked best and what we need improve on. Through these tournaments, we were able to bond together as a team and become very close (friends).”
The team bonded over making their mascot, Perl said.
“The Friday before our tournament began, we all went to Build-a-Bear and created a team mascot,” Perl said. “The bear has 11 hearts inside, one from each of us, and was dressed by the entire team. We named him Winston, Winnie for short, after the victim in our case. He was our good luck charm that weekend.”
Ungaro said creating a mascot was a trivial experience but also important to promoting team unity.
“It may sound silly, but that it’s just one more example of how close we are as a team and the things we do that bring us closer together,” Ungaro said.
Despite already making history for Bonaventure, the team plans even better accomplishments in their future.
“I knew we had the capability of doing well it was just a matter of putting everything together and performing at a high level,” Hillman said. “We’re not done yet.”
The Mock Trial team will next compete in the Opening Round of the Championship Series (ORCS) in Hamilton, Ohio on Friday, March 14 to Sunday, March 16. The top six teams from each ORCS tournament will advance to the National Championship Tournament in Orlando, Florida from Friday, April 11 to Sunday, April 13.
