The Rutgers University Mock Trial Association hosted its 4th annual Scarlet Knight Mock Trial Invitational (SKMTI) this past weekend from November 21st - November 22nd! The tournament hosted 28 teams from 18 different universities, all of whom brought their A-game with impressive records across the board. RUMTA’s very own C-Team competed in the two-day tournament, facing teams from Fordham Rose Hill, University of Maryland Baltimore County, Dickinson College, and University of Maryland. After competing, C Team Captain, Mike Brestin, noted “we put our all into bettering our team these past few months and it really showed this weekend. Our success at SKMTI has definitely encouraged us to push ourselves even more as we get farther into the season.”
Four members of C-Team during competition, from top left to bottom right: Alexis Simmons, Nandita Vasantha, Sarah Samdani, and Michael Brestin.
This year’s SKMTI was the first ever virtual tournament run by RUMTA, however, with the guidance of Tournament Director, Zoe Chang, and Assistant Tournament Director, Neha Aluwalia, the weekend was able to run smoothly with few technical hiccups. Zoe made sure to express her gratitude after the successful event, noting “we would like to extend a big thank you to all the teams who competed, all the judges who volunteered their time, and all the competitors and coaches for RUMTA who made this virtual SKMTI possible. We cannot wait to see everyone (hopefully in person) next year!” Neha echoed the same thanks, remarking “we are incredibly proud of SKMTI! The tournament would not be possible without the time and dedication of our judges, RUMTA members, and of course, our mastermind Tournament Director, Zoe Chang.”
Left to Right: Tab Room Director, Aabha Joshi and Tournament Director, Zoe Chang.
RUMTA extends a special thanks to Zoe and Neha for their hard work in running the tournament and to RUMTA member Aabha Joshi for her technical expertise in tab. As many teams in the American Mock Trial Association know, running a virtual tournament takes a village so to speak, and this weekend would not have been the success that it was without the unwavering support from our coaches, alumni, and members. RUMTA especially congratulates George Washington University for taking first place at SKMTI with a record of 7 wins and a CS (Competitive Score) of 20.
As the teams in RUMTA “zoom” through tournaments, each competitor has worked tirelessly to improve upon their performances and make the organization stronger as a whole. As we gear up for the Spring season, competitors are focused on honing in on their skills and taking RUMTA to a level that we have never seen before, stay tuned!