HVC Mock Trial Team Kicks Off the 2017 Season with a Decisive Win Over The Albany Academies. From Mr

The HVC Mock Trial Team beat the Albany Academies last Wednesday night in a competition at the courthouse in downtown Albany. This match is the first in the Albany County Mock Trial Tournament. HVC homeschoolers compete against both public and private schools in Albany County. This is the 4th season for the HVC Mock Trial team who has previously won this tournament three times.

Our lawyers for this trial were mock trial veterans Gloria Senecal and Priscilla Capuano as well as new mock trialer, Hannah Warrender.

Gloria opened the trial with a dynamic and compelling five minute opening statement which gave a powerful first impression and set the stage for our success. The judge praised her presence, poise, and pacing. Priscilla wrapped up our performance with a passionate and flawless ten minute closing statement which the judge called "her best moment of the night." Hannah gave a smooth and solid performance in her first role as a mock trial lawyer.

Our witnesses for this trial were new students, Ben Bohl, John Senecal, and returning student Taisie Harrington who played our star witness. Our witnesses were engaging, entertaining and earned high praise from the judge.

Andrew Aloisi was our official timekeeper for the trial.

All mock trial team members were at the courthouse on Wednesday night. This year's roster has a record number of students including: Andrew Aloisi, Ben Bohl, Priscilla Capuano, Susie Colandrea, Michael Cuke, Charlie DesRosiers, Nate Duffy, Grace Gutch, John Gutch, Taisie Harrington, Ainsley Hosley, Angela McCauley, Kelsi McHerron, Ben Mousseau, Leandra Rhodes, Gloria Senecal, John Senecal, Katherine Shafer, Madeline Shafer and Hannah Warrender.

This victory is a culmination of months of practice and preparation. Mock trial students meet weekly at HVC to learn about professionalism and the law. Additionally, they attend the HVC Mock Trial Camp in January. Throughout the school year, we have had various speakers including prosecutors, defense attorneys and FBI agents.

Every team in NYS works on the same case. The case is tried at the county, regional and state level. The HVC Mock Trial Team has made it as far as the semi-finals at the regional level. This year they set their sites toward advancing to the state finals.

This tournament is sponsored by the Albany County Bar Association and is part of the statewide NYS High School Mock Trial Competition. Each team is assigned a volunteer attorney adviser by their local bar association. Our attorney adviser, Eric Sills has been with our team since our first year of competition. During mock trial season, he meets weekly with our team. He dedicates hours of time (both in and out of class) to teaching, mentoring and preparing our students for competition. Under his guidance, the team has won the county championship for three straight years. We believe he is the best mock trial coach in NYS. Mr. Sills encourages the students to work hard, follow the rules and have fun. His expertise, humor and real life court stories have made him a favorite with his students. Mr. Sills, his wife (Special Agent Sills) and their two sons have been adopted into our HVC family. We are grateful for their sacrifices and continued dedication to our team.

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Our next trial is Wednesday, March 8. We play Voorheesville. A win at this match will secure our spot in the semi-finals in April. If you would like to learn more about the HVC Mock Trial Program or attend one of our trials, contact Renee Capuano.