WHEELERSBURG- The Wheelersburg High School Mock Trial team won both of their trials at Regional Competition in Batavia, Ohio on February 17 qualifying them to advance to State Competition in Columbus March 9-11.

During the Regional Competition Wheelersburg student Abyghale Jones won an Outstanding Attorney Award and Brady Schomburg won an Outstanding Witness Award.

83 teams from the state of Ohio advanced from District to Regional Competition and 24 of those teams qualified to advance from Regional to State Competition. The 2023 state champion team will represent Ohio at the National High School Mock Trial Competition which will take place May 18-20 in Little Rock, AR, hosted by the Arkansas Mock Trial Foundation.

The Wheelersburg team is coached by Evan Wills and their legal advisor is Eric Kephas. “The team is really excited about this opportunity!” said Wills. “These young people deserve a tremendous amount of credit for the work they’ve been putting in since September. This team is driven from within. They hold each other accountable and it’s a humbling experience to work with such a fantastic group of students.”

The Ohio Center for Law-Related Education celebrates its 40th year of Mock Trial Competition in Ohio this year. Each Ohio Mock Trial team consists of five to eleven students who assume the roles of attorneys and witnesses to present both sides of an original, unscripted case based on an important constitutional issue. At the district and regional levels of competition, each team competes in two trials against opposing teams. Teams must win both trials,or the majority of their judges’ ballots, to advance to the next level of competition. More than 1,000 legal professionals serve as volunteer judges, competition coordinators, and team advisors. Ohio Mock Trial is Ohio’s largest high school academic competition and among the largest high school mock trial programs in the nation.