The ULM Mock Trial team is prepping for regionals. They recently attended the Kangaroo Brawl competition in Sherman, Texas on Jan. 25-26 and took home a nice reminder of what they’re capable of.

Out of the three teams representing ULM, one, the maroon team, finished third place.

They also had Sierra Lovell win a witness award for both sides. Rebecca Pittman and Emma Brunel won best witness awards for one side and Isiah Chavis won a best attorney award.

Shelby Joyner, a fall 2019 political science graduate, is the captain of the maroon team. She’s still eligible to compete this season and said the best thing about the Kangaroo Brawl was realizing how much her team had grown.

“Ending the first day winning three out of our four ballots solidified in my team’s mind how good they were,” said Shelby Joyner, the captain of the maroon team.

Joyner said they only lost ballots to one team during the first day.

The purpose of mock trial and its competitions is to give a real-life perspective to future attorneys of what a trial is like, what discovery is like and how to hold depositions.

Ethan Estis, a freshmen political science major, said he enjoys being a part of the Mock Trial team because of this and the opportunity to learn from some of the upperclassmen. He had a lot of praise for Joyner in particular.

“My captain Shelby Joyner is the most understanding captain I have ever had and is always open to suggestions, no matter what you are on the team, and I believe that is what creates great team structure,” Estis said.

Another person full of praise was Brunel. She said her teammate Chavis was crucial in inspiring the team through the competition.

“I look up to his professionalism and ability to think on his feet at any time. Also, shout out to his ability to make us feel emotional every time his time comes to do his closing statement,” Brunel said.