On Thursday, November 7, the Mock Trial team won their first round of regular competition at the Orange County Superior Court. The prosecution went up against the defense team from Northwood High School and won.

“This is especially notable because the current case, People vs Matsumoto, is more favorable for all the defense teams, and we were short a member,” said Diego Izurieta, faculty advisor for the Mock Trial team.

Senior Nicole Motherway was nominated by the other team as MVP and won an award for Outstanding Trial Attorney. Motherway also won two other medals for Outstanding Trial Attorney at the two scrimmages held earlier in the season.

The scrimmages are primarily for Orange County teams to hone their skills and prepare for the official competitions at the courthouse. Other Sage Hill awards at these scrimmages include junior Kaylana Lee for Outstanding Trial Attorney and senior Ruya Tazebay for Outstanding Witness.

“This year, for the first time, we do not have an attorney coach,” Izurieta said. “However, we have the benefit of counseling from [Sage Hill parent and Orange County Superior Court judge Richard Lee].”

On Thursday, November 14, the defense made their debut facing off against Tarbut V'Torah in OC Superior Court. Sage Hill won, putting the team at 2-0 on the season so far. Sophomore Celine Shafee was nominated by the other team as MVP.

Both the prosecution and the defense teams will head back to court this week for the next round of competition.