The Tyrone Mock Trial team competed against Greensburg Salem in the Regional finals last Tuesday. While Greensburg was declared the winner of the trial, the score was very close.

“A few of the judges and I were speaking afterward about how impressed we were with both teams,” said Blair County Judge Tim Sullivan, who was the presiding judge for the trial.

Tyrone lost to Greensburg three ballots to one. However, the margin on all of the juror’s ballots was less than six points, with two ballots being decided by two points or less.

“The scores indicate how closely in skill your teams are. It is a shame that one team loses,” said scoring judge Shawn Sullivan.

This was only the second time in Tyrone Mock Trial history that a team made it to regional finals.

In this trial, Tyrone argued as the plaintiff in the case of The Estate of George Romero vs. Ashley Williams.

The attorneys for Tyrone’s team this year are Miranda Goodman, Mario Grugan, and Ashlyn McKinney. On the plaintiff side, the witnesses are Alysa Wheland, Emily Dale, and Cassidy Miksich.

The witnesses for the defense side of the case are Abigail Kaspick, Sarah Butina, and Caleb McKinney.

While the loss against Greensburg Salem was unfortunate, it was not entirely unexpected as they are five-time PA state mock trial champions.

The best attorney award went to Senior Miranda Goodman and the best witness award went to Freshman Alysa Wheland.

To get to the district final, Tyrone defeated Central Cambria in early January, and despite a close loss to Windber in round two, their point total was highest among teams with one win and one loss, qualifying them for the district championship round.

Tyrone won against Altoona for the District Championship and then defeated Peters Township in the regional semi-final competition to qualify for the regional finals against Greensburg Salem.

“I am extremely proud of this year’s team. They worked hard despite all the COVID restrictions and adapted very well to the Zoom format of the trials,” said Mock Trial advisor Todd Cammarata.

While the team will lose lead attorney Miranda Goodman to graduation, she is the only senior on the A team so Tyrone is looking forward to being competitive again next season.