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A four-member team from Martin Methodist College captured top honors at the 2011 Appellate Moot Court Challenge, part of the Tennessee Intercollegiate Student Legislature’s annual convention held Nov. 17-20 in Nashville.

Martin Methodist’s team – captain Michael Poirier, a senior criminal justice major from Columbia, Tenn.; Ben Biddy, a senior business administration major from Shelbyville; Raleigh Calkins, a senior criminal justice major from Lynnville, Tenn.; and Crystal Rosson, a freshman biology major from Lawrenceburg, Tenn. – defeated Vanderbilt University, Tennessee Tech University and Rhodes College en route to the championship.

It was Martin Methodist College’s first time entering a team in the Appellate Moot Court Challenge, as well as the first experience each of the four team members had in such competition.

"After the first hearing in the challenge, they found themselves in a tight spot, not knowing exactly how to present the information that they knew," said Bill Rutherford, professor of history and chair of the Social Sciences Division at Martin Methodist. "However, utilizing critical thinking, the team worked its way through the preliminary round, qualifying fifth, and also through the semi-final round, qualifying fourth, to make it into the finals with some tough competition, to say the least.

"After a strong start against Vanderbilt, the delegation proved their knowledge against Tennessee Tech on their way to a victory in the competition," Rutherford said.

Three other delegates represented Martin Methodist in other TISL activities: Chloe Davenport, a sophomore history major from Belvidere, Tenn., in the House of Representatives; and Blake Malugin, a senior business administration major from Summertown, Tenn., and Esther Hernandez, a freshman pre-nursing major from Smithville, Tenn., in the Senate.