Phillips/Yuma county 4-H livestock judging team places third at Nationals in Louisville, Ky.

You might recall that in June the Phillips/Yuma County 4-H Livestock Judging Team won the state livestock judging contest. Because of their win, they were given the opportunity to compete at the North American International Livestock Exposition in Louisville, Ky. This is the most prestigious national contest and each State can only send their highest-ranking team.

The contest was held on Wednesday, Nov. 15 and 107 contestants from 28 teams competed. The following morning, all contestants, coaches and several parents piled into the awards breakfast to learn of results. It was then announced that the Phillips/Yuma County Team placed 3rd overall at the contest! This achievement also earns them an invitation to compete at the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh, Scotland in June of 2023.

To break down the team's results further, the Phillips/Yuma County Team was second in Cattle, second in Sheep and fourth in Reasons. In addition to the teams' awards, each member of the 4-H team received awards and recognition. Kellum Carnahan, a recent graduate of Revere High School, was High Individual overall, second in Hogs, sixth in Sheep, 11th in Cattle, 12th in Reasons and received the All-American Award for finishing in the top 20.

Brooklyn Plumb, a recent graduate of Haxtun High School, was 16th overall, was fifth in Cattle, second in Performance Cattle and also received the All-American Award for finishing in the top 20. Lucinda Mares, a sophomore at Holyoke High School, and Bradie Midcap, a recent graduate of Wray High School, were both recognized for talking multiple high sets of Reasons in the contest.

Head Coach, Brandy Morris, along with Tim Becker, started the judging program in Phillips County in 2011 and she has coached ever since. Morris fondly recalled when each one of these team members attended their first practice and is blown away by the progress these youth have made over the years. The team has been assisted in coaching by Bryant Benson for six years, Bobby Strecker for five years, Nicholas Ortner for three years and Jessie Stewart for one year.

All the coaches have competed at the collegiate level and wanted to give back to the youth of the community by sharing their skills and experiences to bring up the next generation of livestock judgers. Livestock Judging has had a profound impact on the lives of these coaches and now has opportunity to leave the same impact on the team's youth.

This is the first time Phillips County has had the opportunity to compete at the National contest and each member can only compete once as a 4-H member. The team and coaches were able to travel to Kentucky, Illinois and Indiana to look at livestock for the week leading up to the contest. Practicing before the competition was a huge factor in the team's success and additional practice was only made possible because of the outpouring financial support from local businesses, community members and livestock producers. Along with this, the team's success is dependent on the livestock producers who have opened their barns and homes up to the team and allowed them to practice on their livestock.

At the contest, the closing remark of one of the contest superintendents was to never forget where you have come from and who helped you get to where you are now. This sentiment has stuck with the team members of the Phillips/Yuma County 4-H Livestock Judging Team. The team greatly looks forward to their trip to Scotland to represent Northeast Colorado and is thankful to the people who have helped them along the way as they have achieved this success.