Our Lady of Lourdes to Compete in State Finals

POUGHKEEPSIE – After winning the Region 4 Mock Trial Tournament on May 10th Our Lady of Lourdes High School’s Mock Trial Team has moved on to compete at the New York State Mock Trial Tournament, which began Sunday, May 23 at 4:00.

The team from Our Lady of Lourdes is led by Lourdes faculty member Andrea DeMeo, assisted by recent Lourdes graduate Emily Sadutto ‘20. The team captains and lead counsels are Mei Rao and Rachel Soliman. Team members include Isabella Cho, Grace Bolander, Rebecca O’Connor, Brittany Reyes, Liam Gilmartin, Alexander Clark, Matthew Bubb and Cutter Quinn.

“When I first started coaching the Mock Trial team here at Our Lady of Lourdes in 2011, I had a goal that we would get Dutchess County to the State Tournament. The students’ hard work and dedication has truly paid off!” said Coach DeMeo.

This year’s competition was conducted virtually due to the ongoing pandemic. Trials began in late January and were held weekly on the county level. Our Lady of Lourdes won the Dutchess County Championship on April 15, 2021. They went on to represent Dutchess County in the Region 4 competition. Region 4 consists of the winning team from Westchester, Rockland, Orange, Putnam, Dutchess and Ulster counties. The Region 4 tournament concluded on May10, 2021 when Our Lady of Lourdes faced the Mount Academy from Ulster County in the final before Hon. David Everett. This is the first time in the history of the program that a team from Dutchess County will be participating in the State competition.

High school teams from public and nonpublic argue both sides of the case and assume the roles of attorneys and witnesses. Judges, usually local judges or attorneys, score the teams based on a rating sheet that includes scoring on preparation, performance, and professionalism. The top team from each of New York State’s eight regions is then invited to attend and participate in the State Finals. Each year more than 400 teams and 1,500 volunteer attorneys participate in the New York State High School Mock Trial Program.

The New York State High School Mock Trial Program is a joint venture of The New York Bar Foundation, the New York State Bar Association, and the Law, Youth and Citizenship Program. In this educational program, high school students have the opportunity to gain first-hand knowledge of civil/criminal law and courtroom procedures. The program is administered in Dutchess County by the Dutchess County Bar Association.

Our Lady of Lourdes is a private Catholic prep school committed to the highest standards of spiritual and academic education offered to a diverse population of high school students in the Mid-Hudson Valley.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email