Oct. 4 2017 08:00 AM

    In addition to winning reasons, all four members of the Wisconsin 4-H team earned All American honors in the 2017 National 4-H Dairy Cattle Judging Contest win.

    The team from Wisconsin won the National 4-H Contest. Pictured are (L to R): Coach Carrie Warmka, Matthew Gunst, Dawson Nickels, Kylie Nickels, Ben Buske, and Coach Linda Behling.
    A total of 86 individuals from 22 teams judged 10 classes and gave five sets of reasons, hoping their hard work would result in success at the 2017 National 4-H Dairy Cattle Judging Contest. Wisconsin 4-H bested all competitors to win the 96th annual 4-H contest held during World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis. They also topped the reasons contest, earning over 30 points more than the next highest team.

    The team from the Badger State consisted of Ben Buske, Matthew Gunst, Dawson Nickels, and Kylie Nickels, and their coaches were Linda Behling and Carrie Warmka. All four teammates earned All American honors, but even more impressively, they also all finished in the top 5 individually for reasons.

    Wisconsin ended the day with 2,017 points, just three points better than the second place team from Maryland. Team members included Todd Allen, Faith Burton, Alicia Hoff, and Ethan Miller. They were coached by Kelly Zepp and Parker Welch. The third place team was from Missouri, followed by the teams from Minnesota and Michigan in fourth and fifth.

    Kylie Nickels from Wisconsin was the High Individual in the National 4-H Contest.

    Kylie Nickels from Wisconsin was the top individual overall. She also placed fourth in reasons. Minnesota’s Jacob Twohey was second, followed by a duo from Maryland, Todd Allen and Faith Burton, who finished in third and fourth. Miriah Dershem from Minnesota rounded out the top five. Karsen Morris from Washington was the top finisher in the placings contest.

    Following Wisconsin in the reasons contest was the team from Maryland. Third place went to Missouri, Michigan was fourth, and Minnesota finished fifth.

    In individual reasons, Wisconsinites Matthew Gunst, Dawson Nickels, Ben Buske, and Kylie Nickels finished first, second, fourth and fifth, respectively. Maryland’s Faith Burton finished in third.

    Congratulations to all 4-H members who participated in the 2017 contest!


    Abby Bauer

    The author is an associate editor and covers animal health, dairy housing and equipment, and nutrient management. She grew up on a dairy farm near Plymouth, Wis., and previously served as a University of Wisconsin agricultural extension agent. She received a master’s degree from North Carolina State University and a bachelor’s from University of Wisconsin-Madison.

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