Contest day opened with a beautiful sunrise and a crisp early October morning. The team completed two pits as individuals in the morning before moving to a second site in the afternoon to complete three pits as a team. Contest days are typically long, and this one is no exception. The students were in the field from 8:00AM to 7:30PM, but with cooperative weather and some amazing soils, nobody was complaining!
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| Contest ready just after sunrise! |
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| Gabe Benitez (Captain) determining soil matrix color while completing his first individual pit |
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| Abbie Clapp (3rd from right) and Matt Lundberg (right) evaluating soil morphology in their first pit as individuals |
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| Minnesota works as a team to complete their first group card in the early afternoon |
On Friday morning, the contest results were announced at an awards breakfast by host (from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln) Dr. Becky Young and NRCS Soil Scientist Becca Hodges. After much anticipation, there was a lot to celebrate. The University of Minnesota placed 7 individuals in the top 20, 4 individuals in the top 10, and took 3rd place overall in the contest, qualifying for the National Collegiate Soil Judging Contest which will be hosted by Ohio State University in April of 2020! Congratulations also to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (1st place) and the University of Missouri (2nd place), who will be joining us at the National contest in the spring.
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| The 2019 University of Minnesota Region V Soil Judging Team. Front row (L-R): Abbie Clapp, Gabe Benitez (Captain - holding 3rd Place Overall Award), Rowan Doyle (6th Place Individual), Morgan Fabian (8th Place Individual). Back Row (L-R): Nic Jelinski (Coach), Harley Braun (2nd Place Individual), Geneva Nunes, Hannah Anderson (4th Place Individual), Matt Lundberg, Will Effertz, Devon Brodie (Assistant Coach). |
A huge thank you to all of the contest hosts, donors, and supporters who made this amazing experience possible!
