Oak Creek High School

Putting Their Best Foot Forward

The competitors included six young women who live in Patch.com sites: Abby Rufer of Brookfield , Amy Walsh of Sussex , Becca Richter of Waukesha , CeCi Scheuber of Menomonee Falls , Gina Miliacca of Oak Creek , and Sarah Creegan of Elm Grove .

But winning the top spot was Jeanette Morelan of Racine , who was selected to serve as the 2012 Distinguished Young Woman of Wisconsin, winning a $3,500 scholarship plus $1,000 in additional awards.

Founded in 1958 in Mobile, Ala., Distinguished Young Women touts itself as the largest and oldest national scholarship program for high school girls, having provided more than than 700,000 young women with more than $93 million in cash scholarships.

It previously was known as Jr. Miss, but the national office decided to change the name in 2010 to direct the program away from the connotations of being a beauty pageant.

“The young women are not given crowns or banners, but they earn a medallion. They are judged about inner, not outer beauty,” said Sue Herman, state chairperson.

The young women competing pointed out there is no swimsuit competition, and they do not get points for beauty.

Each of the 13 participants were district or at-large winners in their regional areas. They competed in five categories showcasing their public speaking, poise, personality, self-confidence and knowledge.

“Before the on-stage portion, each of the participants interviewed with our judges,” said Ellen Linnihan, the Brookfield and Elm Grove district chairperson. “Questions from the judges were based on the interests of the young women, such as people they admire, what they would change about their generation, or activities and public service projects they are involved in.”

Fifty-five percent of their final state competition score was based on their on-stage performance on Saturday, which included talent, fitness, and self-expression.

For the self-expression portion, the young women wearing formal dresses showed their composure in the spotlight of the stage as they answered the question: “How has a trial in your life helped you to become a better person?”

In Wisconsin about 60 young women participate in the program annually. Winners receive scholarship awards, and one gets the chance to compete at the National Finals competition in Alabama in June 2012.

DASH High School Track Oak Creek Meet Report « DASH Team Blog

Hello DASH families,

It was an exciting day watching the high school track team in Oak Creek last Tuesday.  The DASH team was in peak form.  It seemed like in every race someone stepped up and had a great showing.  I think we surprised a lot of people with how we performed.  All our hard work is paying off.  This team is young, and it is good.

The jumpers started us off.  All of our boy long jumpers, Sam Porcaro, Steven Klapak, Joe Ingersoll, and Hudson Nyhart, had jumps over 16 feet. Sam Porcaro led the way again with a DASH record 16-11! Samantha Schultz led the way for the girls. She and Martha Egan both came in with jumps of over 13 feet. Joe Ingersoll placed 2nd overall in the High Jump in another memorable showing.

The running events were next and Samantha Schultz got the DASH fans excited. She won her heat to finish 5th overall with a great time of 13.96. Martha Egan had a good first race of the year placing second in her heat. In the 1600 meters, Abigail Westendorf finished ahead of Emily Caspers with a good race. Luke Versweyveld bided his time before showing us his kick in the 1600 meters. Luke came from the outside to pass a big group right before the finish to end up in 2nd place. I overheard people talk about his sub-5 minute performance later. They did not see him coming until he was past. Faith Penza looked good in her personal best 400 meter race. For the boys, Luke Versweyveld, Hudson Nyhart, Joe Ingersoll, and Quinlan Thomas kept the DASH fans cheering in their 400 meter races. Steven Klapak ran for the first time this year in the 800 meters and outkicked everyone to win his heat. Sam Porcaro was next and finished with the best DASH 800 meter time of the year. Samantha Schultz was impressive again in the 200 meters for a 6th place finish. Allie George was right behind to finish 8th. Matthew Hughes waited until the 3200 meter race to show off his paces. He made it worth the wait as he moved up from 4th place all the way to 1st, breaking 11 minutes! Emily Caspers set her personal record in the 3200 meters as well. I missed the 4×400 meter relays, but with all the cheering going on I know they were exciting. Our girls team of Faith Penza, Allie George, Abigail Westendorf, and Samantha Schultz ran their best time of the year. Hudson Nyhart, Steven Klapak, and Sam Porcaro got the boys off to a good start, with Matthew Hughes running the anchor lap a few minutes after his 3200 meter race to give us 5th place.

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