Wooster Excels at American Collegiate Moot Court Association National Championship

Fourteen students earn All-American honors at competition in Des Moines, Iowa

Fourteen College of Wooster students earned All-American honors at the 2008 American Collegiate Moot Court Association (ACMA) National Championship in Des Moines, Iowa.

WOOSTER, Ohio - The College of Wooster distinguished itself on a national stage with a supreme performance at the American Collegiate Moot Court Association (ACMA) Championship, hosted by Drake University Law School in Des Moines, Iowa, last week (Jan. 18-19).

Fourteen Wooster students earned All-American honors, including Kate McCarthy and Drew Glassroth, who combined to win the first national championship in school history. McCarthy, a junior from Portage, Mich., and Glassroth, a senior from Brookline, Mass., won the ACMA Midwest Regional Championship in December and entered the national tournament as the fourth seed. They won all three preliminary rounds on Friday, and then swept through five elimination rounds on Saturday, including the championship round argued before two active justices and one retired justice of the Iowa Supreme Court and the chief judges from two different federal districts.

"I have never seen a team from any school have a better run at a moot court competition than Drew and Kate's run at the 2008 ACMA nationals," said Mark Weaver, professor of political science and coach of Wooster's Moot Court team. "One of the judges in the third round on Friday was a Drake Law student who told Kate that she was 'incredibly poised and presented her arguments with an amazing passion' and that she had learned several points from Kate's presentation style. On the second day of competition, one of the judges told Drew, 'your grasp of the Commerce Clause rivals that of Justice Scalia himself.'

McCarthy and Glassroth were understandably excited about the outcome. "Our nationals experience surpassed all expectations," said McCarthy. "All of our hard work finally culminated in an amazing record-breaking national championship."

"How many undergraduates can say that they have argued a case before a panel of state Supreme Court justices and chief judges from two federal districts?" said Glassroth. "Winning a national championship is an affirmation that our resources here at Wooster are among the best in the country. I'm incredibly proud to have been a part of this team."

Also earning All-American honors from Wooster in Oral Argument competition were senior Andrew Gross of Hopkins, Minn., and sophomore Thomas Loughead of Mason, Ohio, who made it to the quarter finals; senior Jeffrey Kaatz of Huron, Ohio, and senior Lauren Mogavero of Erie, Pa., who finished in the Top 16; and sophomore Shane Legg of Canton, Ohio, and sophomore Claire Burgess of Louisville, Ky., as well as junior Elysia Tonti of Pittsburgh, Pa., and senior Justin Chapman of West Chester, Ohio, who placed in the Top 32.

In addition, three Wooster students earned All-American honors by finishing in the Top 10 of the Individual Orator competition. Abigail Kline, a senior from Willard, Ohio, placed third; Burgess, took ninth; and McCarthy came in 10th. Joining this trio were Mogavero (13th), Michael Doerr (15th) a senior from Sleepy Hollow, Ill., and Tonti, (18th), each of whom finished among the Top 20 orators.

Four other Wooster students received All-American recognition as a result of their performance in the Written Brief competition. Kline and Kyle Brainard, a senior from Farmdale, Ohio, placed third in Brief for Respondent, while Alexandra Schmitt, a junior from Coshocton, Ohio, and Sarah Palagyi, a sophomore from Novelty, Ohio, took third in Brief for Petitioner. Honorable mention honors in Brief Writing went to Maureen Hanlon, a senior from Ann Arbor, Mich., and Doerr, (Brief for Respondent), Legg and Burgess (Brief for Respondent), McCarthy and Glassroth (Brief for Respondent), and Gross and Thomas Loughead (Brief for Petitioner).

"Every person on the team contributes as individuals to the forming the arguments," said Burgess. "This results in a very high level of critical thinking for the group."

Mogavero cited teamwork as the key to Wooster's success. "What distinguishes us from other schools is our ability to work together," she said. "Each and every team member contributed to our success by attending weekly practices, working together to develop original arguments, and supplying individual critiques."

Weaver also acknowledged the support from the College and the community. "Our team could never have achieved this success without the support of the Pre-Law Advising Program, the Wayne County Bar Association, and many attorneys who work with us," said Weaver. "In particular, Doug Drushal, Jason Storck and Mike Buytendyk gave up several evenings to help us prepare for competition this year."