The United States Air Force Academy wins the UNT Dallas College of Law Moot Court Invitational; Lama
On October 21st and October 22nd, 124 moot court competitors gathered at the UNT Dallas College of Law Invitational for the largest United States undergraduate moot court invitational in history. Competitors came from all over the region and represented 13 different schools including: Arkansas State, Baylor, Howard Payne, Lamar, Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin, Southwestern, Texas A&M, Texas Christian University, United States Air Force Academy, University of North Texas, University of Texas at Arlington, and University of Texas at Dallas.
The competition was tough and the talent from each team was undeniable. Out of 62 teams and 124 speakers, only 32 teams could move onto the second day, and top speakers were narrowed down to the top 20.
In the final and one of the closest rounds of the tournament, Sara Fishbein and James
Hanley from the United States Air Force Academy beat Finalists Alexis Rickmers and Kristen DeWilde from the University of North Texas. In a 4-3 decision, Sara Fishbein and James Hanley earned the tournament championship title. The four competitors had the opportunity to argue in front of the most impressive panel an undergraduate moot court tournament has ever seen. The judges consisted of:
Justice Bill Whitehill - 5th Court of Appeals, Dallas
Krisi Kastl - Former President of Dallas Women's Lawyers Association
Honorable Martin Lowy - Former District Judge for the 101st District Court.
Dolly Garcia - Associate General Counsel for the UNT Legal System, former Assistant to the State of Texas Attorney General
Justice David Schenck - 5th Court of Appeals, Dallas
Justice Craig Stoddart - 5th Court of Appeals, Dallas
Honorable Richard Magnis - Presiding Judge for the 283rd Judicial District Court
On the first day of the tournament, awards were given out to the Top 20 Orators (pictured below). From the 1st to the 124th orator, speaker points were within decimal points of each other. Congrats to the top oral advocates:
1. Danelle Sanders - Lamar University (Pictured right)
2. Jenna True - United States Air Force Academy
3. Chelsea Strawn - Baylor University
4. Kevin Kim - United States Air Force Academy
5. Kristen DeWilde - University of North Texas
6. Juan Luna - Texas A&M University
7. Thatcher Townson - Baylor University
8. Reagan Williams - Arkansas State University
9. Hannah Vecseri - Baylor University
10. Alec Hubbard - United States Air Force Academy
11. Annika Edgington - United States Air Force Academy
12. Colleen Slein - United States Air Force Academy
13. Siara Dodds - Lamar University
14. Lakshmi Achari - Texas A&M University
15. Abby Rogers - University of North Texas
16. Caitlin Wood - Howard Payne University
17. Marcos DeHoyos - Texas A&M University
18. James Hanley - United States Air Force Academy
19. Josue Barron - University of North Texas
20. Derek Tallent - University of Texas at Dallas
In addition to the finalists, tournament champions, and speaker awards, the following teams took awards on the second day:
Round of 32:
Derek Tallent and Dalton Owens from UTD
Siara Dodds and Danelle Sanders from Lamar
Aaron Woodall and Conner Joyce from Southwestern
Kevin Kim and Colleen Slein from USAFA
Jonathan McKinney and Danielle Sullivan from UNT
Sannika Reddy and Marcos DeHoyos from Texas A&M
Memona Niazi and Hannah Vecseri from Baylor
David Elletson and Jenna True from USAFA
Ryan Sherer and Levi Morris from Lamar
Juan Luna and Lakshmi Achari from Texas A&M
Austin Taylor and Kristyn Couvillion from SHSU
Cameron Cerf and Spencer Metcalf from UNT
Reagan Williams and Ryan Nix from ASU
Zachary Boullt and Anastasia Zaluckyj from UTD
Aaron Lozano and Jessica Browning from A&M
Julie Nelson and Rebekah Mercer from Baylor
Sweet 16:
Hope Steffensen and Megan Rose (UTD/A&M Hybrid)
Cole Browndorf and Mohamed Sharaf from TCU
Mary Kathryn Cruse and Grant Long from ASU
Josue Barron and David Klein from UNT
Abby Rogers and Breaunna Friels from UNT
Kirsten Koschnick and Thatcher Townson from Baylor
Joseph Hartman and Sarah Colley from Texas A&M
Justin Harris and Bailey Myler from HPU
Quarter-Finalists:
Emily Volk and Ashley Dyer from Baylor
Jordan Hahn and Andie McCoy from HPU
Rebeca Puente and Isaac Sommers from HPU
Jocelyn Sitton and Becca Michelson from TCU
Semi-Finalists:
Alexandra Vance and Alec Hubbarb from USAFA
Dana Call and Andrew Resweber from USAFA
If you'd like to volunteer as a judge at one of our upcoming regional tournaments (Nov 18th - 19th at A&M Fort Worth and Texas Tech Law) or if you'd like to find out more about how you can get involved with TUMCA Moot Court, please contact tumca2016@gmail.com.