THE COLUMBIA UNION College Mock Trial team defeated the University of Dayton, Sunday, January 29 in a three-hour mock trial competition. CUC has now won four out of five annual competitions with the University of Dayton.

Fifty students, parents, and teachers from Spring Valley Academy and area churches witnessed the competition, which took place in the Montgomery County Common Pleas Courthouse in downtown Dayton, Ohio. The two scoring judges, both magistrates in the Dayton area, scored CUC as the winner. CUC students also received the most points for outstanding witness. Andrew Ritland, a senior, political studies and history major, received the most points, followed by Tyson Shaw, a junior political studies and religion major. Tyson is from nearby Columbus, OH and his parents witnessed the competition.

The members of this year's mock trial team are all political studies majors with a pre-law emphasis. In addition to Andrew and Tyson, the other members are Ellie Barker (sophomore), Jasmine Johnson (senior), Andrew MacKay (junior) and Estevanny Jimenez (senior). The team is coached by Steven Brennwald, head of a law office in Washington, DC, and Joseph Wright, Assitant State's Attorney in Prince George's County, Maryland.

CUC is the only Adventist College with a mock trial team and this year CUC has 60 pre-law students, the largest number in any Adventist college. You can find more information at www.cuc.edu or at the CUC Center for Law & Public Policy. For much more information about the Mock Trial team or about the pre-law program at CUC, contact Roy Branson at rbranson@cuc.edu