On April 4-6, 2002, students from the University of Minnesota, Crookston (UMC) placed first in many contest that were part of the annual National Judging Competition of the National Association of Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA).  UMC teams traveled to California State Polytechnic University in Pomona and took home the NACTA Sweepstakes Trophy for the senior division (four-year schools) among several other awards. 

 
Members of UMC's 2002 NACTA Teams included:  Back Row (from left): Brent Arndt, Luke Shields, Kyle Smith, Mary Wingert, Josh Johnson , Matt Fredrickson; Middle Row: Tony Lorenz, Cory Palm, Sara Eastman, Staci Slykerman, Anna Anderson; Front Row: Advisor Dave Hoff, Nick Ziemann, Martin Tubby, Tom Rude, Rebecca Kuechle, Sara Ehlers, Tim Adams.

Forty UMC students participated in the contests making up the competition:  Knowledge Bowl, Agricultural Discussion, Agricultural Computers, Agricultural Business Management, Agricultural Biology, Horticulture, Animal Science, Crops, Livestock Judging, Horse Judging, Dairy Judging, and Soils.  Dave Hoff, assistant professor of agricultural business, was the NACTA Coordinator for UMC's teams.  Martin Tubby served as UMC's NACTA student spokesperson, Rebecca Kuechle served as Treasurer, and several faculty and staff, including Lyle Westrom, Harouna Maiga, Susan Jacobson, Marv Mattson, Chuck Habstritt, Christo Robberts, and Dave Hoff, coached the teams.

UMC students prepare for the NACTA judging competitions throughout the year, starting as early as September. They spend many hours in study and fundraising in addition to their regular class workloads. Anna Anderson served as coordinator for the group's biggest fundraiser, the UMC NACTA Car Wash.  These students put in this effort because the NACTA contest is a great opportunity for them to gain more professional experience in their major field of study and to build career skills.

NACTA competitions have been held since 1957 and involve knowledge and skills contests covering various agricultural topics. The competition is tough, including college and university students from all across the nation. The event is held in different areas of the country each year to give students an opportunity to travel to areas they may otherwise never visit and agricultural colleges the responsibility of hosting the competition.

A few of the students who earned top placing in various contests with the sweepstakes trophy they helped bring home (from left):  Tom Rude, Kyle Smith, Tim Adams, Matt Fredrickson, and Staci Slykerman.

First Place Team – Sweepstakes Award, Senior Division (four-year colleges and universities)

Second Place Team – Agricultural Knowledge Bowl

Team members:  

• Tim Adams of Eleva, WI

• Paul Detloff of Bertha, MN

• Matt Fredrickson of Mondovi, WI

• Dan Traxler of Le Center, MN

Second Place Team – Agricultural Discussion

Second Place Individual – Dan Traxler

Team members:  

• Samantha Lukas of Embarrass, MN

• Cory Palm of Portland, ND

• Martin Tubby of Drayton Norwich, England

First Place Team – Ag Computers, Overall

First Place Individual – Tim Adams

First Place Team – Ag Computers, Computer Applications

First Place Individual – Tim Adams
Second Place Individual – Jaime Goodyke

Third Place Team – Ag Computers, Computer Knowledge

First Place Individual – Tim Adams

Team members:  

• Tim Adams

• Jamie Goodyke of Crookston

• Rebecca Kuechle of Kimball, MN

• Tony Lorenz of Howard Lake, MN

• Kyle Smith of Belgrade, MN

First Place Team – Ag Business Management, Overall

First Place Individual – Kyle Smith
Second Place Individual – Tom Rude

First Place Team – Ag Business, Management Case Study

First Place Individual – Kyle Smith
Second Place Individual – Tom Rude
Third Place Individual – Rebecca Kuechle

First Place Team – Ag Business, Knowledge Exam

Second Place Individual – Kyle Smith
Third Place Individual – Rebecca Kuechle

First Place Team – Ag Business, Management Problem Solving

First Place Individual – Kyle Smith
Second Place Individual – Tom Rude

Team members:  

• Susan Boeddeker of Garfield, MN

• Tom Rude of Zumbrota, MN

• Rebecca Kuechle

• Kraig Nelson of Lake Park, MN

• Kyle Smith

First Place Team – Ag Biology, Overall

First Place Individual – Jeremy Sather
Second Place Individual – Tim Adams
Third Place Individual – Rebecca Locke

First Place Team – Ag Biology, Identification

First Place Individual – Tim Adams
Second Place Individual – Rebecca Locke
Third Place Individual – Jeremy Sather

First Place Team – Ag Biology, Technical Knowledge

First Place Individual – Jeremy Sather
Second Place Individual – Tim Adams
Third Place Individual – Rebecca Locke

Team members:  

• Tim Adams

• Paul Detloff 

• Rebecca Locke of Bemidji, MN

• Jeremy Sather of Gary, MN

First Place Team – Horticulture, Overall

First Place Individual – Matt Fredrickson
Third Place Individual – Rachel Sundbom

First Place Team – Horticulture, Technical Knowledge

First Place Individual – Matt Fredrickson
Second Place Individual – Luke Shields
Third Place Individual – Rachel Sundbom

First Place Team – Horticulture, Identification

First Place Individual – Matt Fredrickson
Second Place Individual – Rachel Sundbom

Second Place Team – Horticulture, Landscape Practicum

First Place Individual – Matt Fredrickson

Team members:  

• Matt Fredrickson

• Luke Shields of Park Rapids, MN

• Rachel Sundbom of Clearbrook, MN

• Mary Wingert of Dover, MN

Second Place Team – Animal Science: Large Animals, Overall

Second Place Individual – Tom Rude

Second Place Team – Animal Science: Large Animals, Knowledge Exam

Third Place Individual – Andrew Holle

First Place Team – Animal Science: Large Animals, Problem Solving

First Place Individual – Tom Rude
Second Place Individual – Jennifer Johnson

Second Place Team – Animal Science: Large Animals, Lab Practicum

Team members:  

• Joe Gamradt of Sauk Centre, MN

• Jennifer Johnson of Grand Forks, ND

• Andrew Holle of New Salem, ND

• Tom Rude

Second Place Team – Animal Science: Companion Animals, Overall

First Place Individual – Anne Ahiers

First Place Team – Animal Science: Companion Animals, Knowledge Exam

First Place Individual – Kristin Haukos 
Second Place Individual – Anne Ahiers

First Place Team – Animal Science: Companion Animals, Problem Solving

First Place Individual – Anne Ahiers
Second Place Individual – Bonita Hanson

Second Place Team – Animal Science: Companion Animals, Lab Practium

Second Place Individual – Anne Ahiers

Team members:  

• Anne Ahiers of St. Paul, MN

• Anna Anderson of Herman, MN

• Bonita Hanson of Evansville, MN

• Kristin Haukos of Elbow Lake, MN

Third Place Team – Crops, Plant and Seed Identification

Third Place Individual – Crops, Lab Practicum I – Kevin Jacobson

Team members:  

• Kevin Jacobson of Fullerton, ND

• Ben Loll of Campbell, MN

• Trent McCollum of Bejou, MN

• Jeremy Sather

Third Place Team – Livestock Judging, Overall

Third Place Team – Livestock Judging, Beef

Third Place Team – Livestock Judging, Swine

Third Place Team – Livestock Judging, Sheep

Third Place Team – Livestock Judging, Oral Reasons

Team members:  

• Brent Arndt of Lakefield, MN

• Kristin Johnson of Carpio, ND

• Rachel Roggenkamp of Bluffton, MN

• Nick Ziemann of Detroit Lakes, MN

Second Place Team – Horse Judging, Overall

Second Place Team – Horse Judging, Halter

Second Place Team – Horse Judging, Performance

Second Place Team – Horse Judging, Oral Reasons

Team members:  

• Tammy Bassingthwaite of Sarles, ND

• Terry Bellach of Emerado, ND

• Sara Eastman of Clinton, MN

• Mary Plumb of Byron, MN

First Place Team – Dairy Cattle Judging, Overall

First Place Individual – Paul Detloff
Second Place Individual – Sara Ehlers
Third Place Individual – Staci Slykerman

First Place Team – Dairy Cattle Judging, Holsteins

First Place Individual – Paul Detloff
Second Place Individual – Sara Ehlers
Third Place Individual – Josh Johnson

First Place Team – Dairy Cattle Judging, Brown Swiss

First Place Individual – Paul Detloff
Third Place Individual – Staci Slykerman

First Place Team – Dairy Cattle Judging, Other Breeds

First Place Individual – Staci Slykerman
Second Place Individual – Paul Detloff

First Place Team – Dairy Cattle Judging, Oral Reasons

First Place Individual – Paul Detloff
Second Place Individual – Sara Ehlers
Third Place Individual – Staci Slykerman

Team members:  

• Paul Detloff

• Sara Ehlers of Clearbrook, MN

• Josh Johnson of Hoffman, MN

• Staci Slykerman of LaMoure, ND

Posted  04/19/2002
Contact: Andrew Svec, 218-281-8435