Angelo State Takes Judging Contest Win

FORT WORTH, Texas-Michigan State, Nebraska, Purdue, Kansas State. While the names sound like a potential final four matchup, the game was definitely different as 21 universities and junior colleges vied for championship honors during the American Paint Horse Association (APHA) Intercollegiate Horse Judging Spring Sweepstakes, held April 14 in Fort Worth, Texas.

Sponsored by Hart Trailer Manufacturing Inc. of Chickasha, Oklahoma, the contest required students to judge four halter classes as well as four performance classes, which included Western pleasure, hunter under saddle, western riding and reining. In addition, students were scored on their ability to orally defend their individual placings by giving "reasons" to contest officials.

Horses and exhibitors were provided by North Texas area horse owners and included Paints, Quarter Horses and Appaloosas. After the judging contest classes concluded, National Cutting Horse Association judge Chubby Turner presented a short 30-minute seminar on judging cutting horses.

Angelo State University of San Angelo, Texas, won the senior college division besting 19 other teams from 14 schools with a total score of 2,225. In capturing the win, Angelo State, coached by Matt McMillian, also took first place in halter and performance judging, as well as third place in reasons. Team members included Deanna Crain, Heidi Ertresvaag, Haley Knutson, Justin Jackson and Jessica Kiker. Crain was named fourth high individual overall, while Jackson and Ertresvaag took sixth and eighth place overall honors.

Kansas State-Manhattan, Texas A&M-College Station, West Texas A&M-Canyon, and Colorado State-Fort Collins, rounded out the top five in the senior division.

Texas Tech University team member Amy Nash was crowned high individual overall with a score of 574, taking first place in performance and reasons competition, with a fourth in halter judging.

In junior college competition, Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (NEO) team "B" outscored nine other teams to take the championship with a score of 1,672. Coached by Kevin Poole, the Miami, Oklahoma-based college, was the winner in halter and reasons competition, while their sister NEO "A" team was the winner in performance, and second place overall. Team members included Rodne Roden, Rusty Wooten, Kim Honstein, and Angela Harmon, with Roden, Wooten, and Honstein taking third, fourth, and seventh high individual honors, respectively. Clarendon College-Clarendon, Texas, Northwest College-Poewell, Wyoming, and Redlands Community College-El Reno, Oklahoma, completed the top five.

Ryan Harrington, a member of the NEO "A" team, was the junior college high individual, taking first place in performance, as well as fifth in halter and reasons.

"This has been a great start to a program we're going to support for years," said APHA Executive Secretary Ed Roberts. "We intend to continue our tradition of supporting the entire industry by maintaining an all-breed posture to the contest and will also bring in other events that we hope will help prepare these young people to serve our industry in the future."