LUMT Kicks Off Semester with Strong Competitions

The Lee University Mock Trial (LUMT) team has officially started its semester with an invitational competition at Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) followed by scrimmages with Emory University and the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga (UTC).

Current team members are Paul Atherton, Madelyn Ballew, Shelby Flanigan, Aidan Giavelli, Sophie Harris, Nolan Wallace, Victoria Lee, and Matthew Shackelford.

During the competition at EKU, the team competed against four teams from Indiana University, Eastern Michigan University, the University of Dayton, and Bellarmine University. The team's final record was 4-4, and Atherton received an Outstanding Attorney Award. According to Atherton, the competition was rigorous, but the Lee mock trial team held its own.

"Without doubt competing as the underdog, we performed very well, and split ballots." said Atherton. "That we were able to once again compete against teams of the highest caliber demonstrates our team's ambition."

Following this competition, the team traveled to Emory to scrimmage the Emory team's plaintiff side. Emory is a consistently strong team and consequently, the team gained insight into how to compete with top-tier teams.

The Lee Mock Trial team later scrimmaged UTC's team on Lee's campus in the SMC Lecture Hall. The match was judged by five scorers, some of whom were LUMT alumni (Graham Stewart '21 and Sydney Snyder '22).

"We are fortunate to have connections to other programs in the southeast," said Atherton. "These programs are some of the best in the nation and our friendly rivalries strengthen every side tremendously."

The regional competition is taking place this weekend, Feb. 13-16 in Jackson, Mississippi. LUMT competes against 22 other southeastern programs, such as the University of Georgia and Vanderbilt. The full team is participating.