The Mock Trial team came up short of advancing to the club’s competition semi-finals, which took place on Thursday, February 21st. How the team was notified of this verdict was unusual.
The team originally believed they had earned a spot in the semifinals, but apparently, the scores posted by the judges were in error. “We had a trial against Monte Vista 2 weeks ago, and they told us we had won,” said team captain Nora Mohamed. “Then, last Thursday at 2:00, Mrs. Webb-Peploe got an email saying that we hadn’t won, and Monte Vista had.” Webb-Peploe is the club’s adviser.
The email was from Jenny Bailey, who organizes mock trial in the district. According to Mohamed, the mistake was a last minute discovery. “I got the news at 3:05pm, and we were supposed to have gone to trial at 4:30pm,” she said.
The sudden news was due to a miscalculation in scores during the previous trial. The judges had told the Campo team that they were moving on to the semifinals, but there was actually a point miscalculation. “We were told it was a 5 or 7 point miscount,” said senior Meera Madra. “I was surprised, because I thought the Monte Vista team didn’t do very well against us,” said Mohamed.
Webb-Peploe was proud of the team’s reaction to the news. “Major kudos to them – they were perfectly okay with the fact that Monte Vista had beaten them. They were only mad because of how close to the trial the information was given to them,” she said.
There was excitement about going to the semifinals for the first time in several years. “The last time we went to semifinals was 4 years ago – my freshman year,” said Mohamed. “I just wish we had gotten in. We would have beaten Cal High, and then gone against Miramonte…we would have done our best.”
“They should’ve made it, absolutely,” said Webb-Peploe. “They were as good as everyone else. It’s a shame that we didn’t make it by a few points.”
Although this represents the end of the line for many seniors this year, Madra looks back at the experience with satisfaction. “I wish we’d gotten in, just to be able to compete with other good teams and the ability to represent Campo,” she said. “It was disappointing, but I’m really proud of our team this year.”
