 This past weekend, Hillsdale took second overall in the Empire Spring League (after finishing first overall in the Premiere League). The final matchup between Hillsdale and Modern Brain was determined after the top 8 teams competed in a single elimination bracket-style format. The final 8 teams consisted of the top 6 teams from the Premiere League (26-team field,) and the top two teams from the Sapphire League (64-team field). Hillsdale earned the spot in the final 8 after taking the top spot in the Premiere League, which featured some of the country's top teams. Heading into the final against a very tough Modern Brain team, Hillsdale had amassed a 26.5-1.5 record after it swept all 16 ballots in the quarters and semis.
The case, Andy Hanks v. CrownFuel Beverages involved a terrorist conspiracy theorist who poisoned energy drinks with home-grown botulism. Andy Hanks, whose son Ty died of botulism poisoning after consuming a contaminated energy drink, sued CrownFuel beverages for negligence for designing a resealable aluminum bottle (with no visible seal to indicate tampering) that provided the perfect anaerobic environment for the botulism to grow. Congratulation to senior Riley Hanson for winning a top attorney award!
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 In the first West Coast Classic hosted by UCLA's mock trial team on UCLA's campus, Hillsdale's A Team took home 2nd place (of 20), while its B Team earned an honorable mention finishing 6th. Congratulations to freshman Joanna Thomas, and sophomore Kellen Kalmbach for earning top witness awards; and to freshman Tianna Yu, junior Kalea Kim, and senior Andrea Chivi for earning top attorney awards.
It was a fantastic trip and Hillsdale is looking forward to going back next year!  On January 10-11, 10 teams gathered for Bay Area Bash IV. Hillsdale, Tam, Morro Bay, St. Ignatius, Trinity A & B, Carmel, Sacramento Country Day, Dos Pueblos, and Lynbrook battled it out over four great, competitive, rounds.
The top two teams, Trinity A and Hillsdale then advanced to the championship in a rematch of last year's state final round, conducted for the the first time on the stage in Hillsdale's theatre. In the end, Trinity defeated Hillsdale two ballots to one, with one tie, to take their fourth straight Bay Area Bash.  Hillsdale is happy to report that three of its recent alumni will be competing for their college teams. Nikki Donovan (top, third from right), named best attorney defense attorney at least year's CA state mock trial championships, will be competing for Berkeley.
Annie Stump (bottom left) and Annabella Lew (bottom right), both of whom competed in the state final last year, will be competing for UCLA. There they will join Hillsdale alumni Rhea Jain who is entering her third year on the team. Nikki, Annie, and Annabella will also join other Hillsdale alumni also competing for their college teams: Maya Musselman (UNC, Chapel Hill), Cole Baker (American), Jamie Sloves (Wesleyan), Jacob Sarver (Brandeis), Jack Spillner (Cornell), Rachel Fekete (Berkeley Moot Court), and Somya Singh (Pomona).. Super proud of all of you! Update: Congratulations to Jack Spillner who won a top attorney award at Binghamton Bearcat Invitational; Cole Baker for winning a top attorney award at the Charm City Classic and a top witness award at Drexel's Dragon Invitational; Rhea Jain for winning top witness awards at the Texas Showdown, Great Chicago Fire, and the 2026 AMTA Regionals; and to Somya Singh for winning top attorney award at the SLO-Town Hoedown.  Hillsdale is proud excited to welcome eight new members to the team. In a very crowded and competitive tryout field, they were the last ones standing, and we're super happy to have them on board. Congratulations to:
Audrey Barsetti Nicole Gutierrez Annabel Murray Ava Rivera Tianna Yu Joanna Thomas Sophie Spillner Siyona Jain  At the 2025 Gladiator 1-on-1 World Championship, Plaintiff Gladiator Casino sued Defendant A.J. Exantus for gambling fraud. The Casino accused Exantus of using marked cards and paying off a trick dealer to take home $15 million at the highest stakes poker tournament in the world. When everyone showed their cards, Hillsdale cashed in. At the in-person Atlanta competition, recent graduate Annie Stump (in her first appearance) took home a trophy for finishing 7th (of 40). Rising senior Jonah Immanuel was awarded an honorable mention for his 12th place finish. Recent graduate Nikki Donovan also received special recognition at the award ceremony for her outstanding performance.
In the on-line competition, rising senior Brianna Hafiz went into the semifinals as the #1 seed and finished 3rd overall (of 36). Brianna also played casino gaming director Li Karthik in the final round. And rising senior M Thompson took home a trophy for 7th place. Both Brianna and M were appearing at Gladiator for the first time. All five of Hillsdale's competitors were recognized for their excellence! In the on-line competition, both Riley Hanson and Neko Javaheri also did a fantastic job serving as second chairs for Brianna and M, respectively. Finally, we want wish both our seniors, Nikki (Berkeley) and Annie (UCLA) congratulations and good luck as they head off to college this fall!  On May 31-June 1, Hillsdale competed in its 5th Tournament of Champions. In a national field of 46 teams, Hillsdale took four teams, consisting of 31 mock trialers. The case was based on the 1994 Tonya Harding-Nancy Kerrigan case in which Harding's husband and "body guard," Sean Eckhardt arranged to attack Harding's chief rival Nancy Kerrigan to take her out of Olympic competition. The prosecution brought two charges against Harding: (1) conspiracy to obstruct justice, and (2) obstruction of justice.
In the end, Hillsdale placed 3 of 4 in the top five in their division, the most we've ever placed in the top 5, and the most of any team in the tournament. Senior Annabella Lew and Sophomore Grace Weinberg took home top witness awards. And freshman Mahati Vaidyanathan won a top attorney award.  This summer four Hillsdale students will compete in the Gladiator 1-on-1 World Championship, the most selective, and prestigious, mock trial competition in the country. It will be the most Hillsdale has ever sent, after sending three last year.
Senior Nikki Donovan will return for the third time after a top-10 finish at last year's Gladiator, and winning top defense attorney in the state at the CA state finals in March. Senior Annie Stump will make her first appearance, and junior Jonah Immanuel will return for the second time after closing in this year's state final. Juniors M Thompson and Brianna Hafiz will compete for the first time in the newly created Gladiator on-line competition.  At Law Day last Friday, April 25, the bar association recognized four student for outstanding performance in county competition. Pretrialer Melody Puls received a special commendation for her performance -- that's following straight perfect scores and MVP in the state final. JV witness Mira Shek was also recognized for their performance as podcaster C.J. Costly. Julia Streeter repeated as the top pretrialer in the county (Hillsdale's first repeat winner). And Neko Javaheri was named the top JV trial attorney.
Earlier in the week, the varsity team also received a resolution last week at the County board of supervisors meeting in recognition of the season. Up next, Hillsdale will send four teams to the Tournament of Champions, a national competition held by MockOn Academy. |
