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A team from the Brandeis Mock Trial Association placed 2nd in the prestigious Yale University Invitational Tournament last month, an achievement that enhances its reputation among the Mock Trial organization on a national level.

To place 2nd in the division at Yale is a huge accomplishment, said Maayan Zack '07, president of the Brandeis Mock Trial Association. You always want to be one of those teams people are scared to be paired against, and the success of the team in such an esteemed competition brings them a step closer to achieving that status.

The Yale Invitational is one of the most competitive invitational tournaments in the country. In total, 64 teams participate in the tournament, and those teams are separated into 2 divisions. Brandeis sent one team to the invitational, consisting of Captains Prerna Bhargava '07 and Marissa Goodman '09 and members Max Eckstein '07, Jon Krisch '07, Elizabeth Masalsky '08, Eric Pekar '08, and Dan Soley '09. In addition to their 2nd place finish as a team, Goodman was also awarded the title Outstanding Witness.

Bhargava attributed the teams success to a new strategy. In the past we focused on attorney power, and now we are focusing more on witness power. Our witnesses should be commended for their outstanding performance, she said. Zack added, the fact that [captains] Prerna Bhargava and Marissa Goodman stress the importance of witnesses shows what strong captains they are.

The teams performance in the competition belies that the group is only five years old. This is the Associations third year competing in the Yale Invitational;

last year they had a team place 10th in their division and this year they have further improved their ranking. The Brandeis Mock Trial Association also hosted the first ever Brandeis University Invitational this year, which, Zack explained, raises the teams status and respect within the [national] Mock Trial Association.

This teams impressive performance in the competition has lifted the Brandeis Mock Trial Association into a new realm of respect and admiration among its competitors. Of the Associations now stronger reputation, Zack commented, this [invitational] was a huge success, not only for Brandeis Mock Trial, but for Brandeis University as a whole.