MARYLAND TEAM WINS NATIONAL 4-H DAIRY JUDGING CONTEST

Maryland received top honors in the National 4-H Dairy Cattle Judging Contest at World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisc. Morgan Meisenheimer and Chelsea Davis led the team, placing third and sixth overall respectively. Maryland also won High Team in Reasons, with Meisenheimer capturing High Individual in Reasons. Karen Anderson of Minnesota took home the honor of High Individual Overall. Rounding out the top five teams overall where; Michigan, second; New York, third; Ohio, fourth; and Minnesota, fifth.

High placing teams and individuals are:
1. Maryland; 1987; coached by Loretta Wright
Team members included Chelsea Davis, Emily Gill, Morgan Meisenheimer and Ariel Taxdal

2. Michigan; 1981; coached by Joe Domecq and Renee McCauley
Team members included Katie Arndt, Lauren Bush, Sarah Mann and Eric Sneller

3. New York; 1963; coached by Douglas Waterman
Team members included Kassandra Abrams, Rebeccah Andrew, Casey Arlig and Darin Buckenmeyer

4. Ohio; 1959; coached by Bonnie Ayars
Team members included Robin Alden, Ty Etgen, Michelle Funk and Jared Smith

5. Minnesota; 1957; coached by Barry Visser
Team members included Karen Anderson, Alan Barka, Elizabeth Olson and Isaac Salfer

6. Virginia; 1944; coached by Welsh and Nuckols
Team members included Callie Alvis, Jordan Ambler, Erin Henley and Esther Smith

7. Iowa; 1913; coached by Randy Hanson
Team members included Jordan Hanson, Aaron Lien, Megan Lien and Carly Lyons

8. Illinois; 1898; coached by Dave Fischer
Team members included Angie Boesche, Mitchell Eickmeyer, Michelle Fluty and Aaron Mitchell

9. Kentucky; 1893; coached by Tucker and Baird
Team members included Dylan Barber, Kevin Herndon, Alex Poole and Madison Shanks

10. Pennsylvania; 1887; coached by Chad Dechow
Team members included Isaac Haagen, Ethan Himmelberger, Amanda Thompson and Lisa Zimmerman

Overall Top 10 Individuals:
1. Karen Anderson, 688, Minnesota
2. Katie Arndt, 683, Michigan
3. Morgan Meisenheimer, 680, Maryland
4. Jared Smith, 678, Ohio
5. Brett Hildebrandt, 672, Wisconsin
6. Chelsea Davis, 666, Maryland
7. Callie Alvis, 662, Virginia
8. Jordan Hanson, 661, Iowa
9. Darin Buckenmeyer, 657, New York
10. Casey Arlig, 654, New York

Top 10 Teams Reasons:
1. Maryland, 669, coached by Loretta Wright
2. Michigan, 662, coached by Joe Domecq and Renee McCauley
3. New York, 648, coached by Douglas Waterman
4. Wisconsin, 646, coached by Linda Behling and Shelly Bohn
5. Minnesota, 639, coached by Barry Visser
6. Pennsylvania, 632, coached by Chad Dechow
7. Kentucky, 627, coached by Tucker and Baird
8. Ohio, 626, coached by Bonnie Ayars
9. Iowa, 618, coached by Randy Hanson
10. Oregon, 618, coached by Ben Krahn and Jim Krahn

Top 10 Individual Reasons:
1. Morgan Meisenheimer, 233, Maryland
2. Karen Anderson, 229, Minnesota
3. Katie Arndt, 226, Michigan
4. Chelsea Davis, 222, Maryland
5. Darin Buckenmeyer, 222, New York
6. Elizabeth Olson, 221, Minnesota
7. Lauren Bush, 220, Michigan
8. Isaac Haagen, 220, Pennsylvania
9. Kassandra Abrams, 219, New York
10. Seth Nehls, 219, Wisconsin

Generous support from sponsors makes the 88th National 4-H Dairy Cattle Judging Contest possible. In 2009, sponsors include: Accelerated Genetics, Advanced Animal Diagnostics, Agri-Nutrition Consulting, American Guernsey Association, American Jersey Cattle Association, American Livestock Insurance, Ayrshire Breeders Association, Furst-McNess, Hoard's Dairyman, Holstein Association USA, International Protein Sires, JBS Packerland, Inc, Kraiburg, Kuhn Knight, Lakeshore Dairy Federation, Land O’ Lakes Purina Feed, Merrick Animal Nutrition, Nasco, National Brown Swiss Cattle Breeders Association, National Dairy Shrine, Professional Dairy Producers of Wisconsin, Pfizer Animal Health, Semex USA, Sexing Technologies, Summit Flexible Products, The Hartford Livestock Insurance and World Dairy Expo.