Anastasia Rose C. Schweiger, Andrea Grace C. Manase, Victor Manuel “Champ” A. Cabrera, Anne Gelika M. Elenzano, Lourence Jason C. Camacho, Ginny Wu and Ji Min Ryu, along with their coaches,Joe Leon Guerrero Taijeron Jr. Galvin Sablan De Leon Guerrero and Lourdes Tudela Mendiola, were greeted at the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport by their proud parents at 2:30 p.m.
The Saipan team bested South Korea’s Daewon Foreign Language High School in the first round and made it all the way to the last round to face Korean Minjok Leadership Academy I.
The Mt. Carmel students competed against seven other teams from Guam and South Korea and finished the event with a perfect 4-0 record.
Schweiger, the most outstanding witness last year, won the best lawyer award this time, while Manase was named most outstanding witness.
“This was amazing! We couldn’t have done this without our coaches and the entire team,” said Manese, referring to the school’s junior varsity team that helped them prepare for the Guam competition.
Schweiger added, “To go to Guam and face off against teams from Guam and Korea was at first intimidating, but we pulled together and showed that we have what it takes to play in the big league.
Taijeron, in a telephone interview yesterday, said he was very pleased at how the students were able to “think on their feet” and work as a team.
He said the team members practiced hard and did exactly what they were trained for.
“We will continue to work hard in practice to ensure that we are always well-prepared to represent the CNMI whenever we have the honor of doing so,” Taijeron added.
He said their supporters should be very proud of the team’s performance.
“We thank all of those who helped us get to Guam — it was well worth the investment of time, money, and resources,” the lawyer said.
He’s hoping that one day, “we can host the invitational tournament and show the teams from Guam and Korea that the CNMI has many other very talented and hard working students.”
The Mt. Carmel team’s main sponsors included Ed Arriola Jr. of the Tan Siu Lin Foundation, Speaker Eli D. Cabrera, R-Saipan, and Rep. Ralph S. Demapan, R-Saipan.
This year’s competition focused on bullying with a criminal case, the People of Illinois vs. Kim Dixon. Dixon is accused of reckless conduct, battery, and aggravated battery, after breaking the arm of Chris Lyman. The case also revolves around accusations that Dixon had bullied Lyman for over five years.
Mount Carmel’s team played two rounds on the prosecution and two rounds on the defense.
