JUNE 5, 2023:
Miranda O’Bryan was crowned Miss South Dakota 2023 at Saturday night’s (June 3, 2023) competition. O’Bryan is originally from Martin, is a graduate of South Dakota State University, and is a news anchor for KOTA Territory News/KEVN Black Hills FOX. In addition to her scholarship of $8,000 for winning the competition, O’Bryan was a preliminary on-stage conversation winner Friday evening ($500) and the overall interview award winner ($1,000). She also received a $500 award as the top fundraiser and the $1,000 Quality of Life award.
O’Bryan’s community service initiative is “Page Turners: Fall in Love with Reading.” As her talent, she sang a jazz-club interpretation of Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space.” She is the daughter of Chris & Mikaela O’Bryan and competed as Miss Missouri River.
First runner-up was Carly Goodhart of Sioux Falls, garnering a $6,000 scholarship. Goodhart also won the $500 on-stage conversation award Thursday night, as well as the $1,000 Sylvia Tannehill “Kindness” Scholarship, and the $250 Miss South Dakota Legacy Scholarship.
Second runner-up was Payton Steffensen of Sioux Falls, receiving a $4,000 scholarship. Steffensen also won the $1,000 preliminary talent award on Friday night, as well as the Ray Peterson Rookie Award for being the highest-placing first time candidate.
Third runner-up was Baylee Dittman of Spearfish, receiving a $3,000 scholarship. Dittman also received the Stan Nase business scholarship of $1,000.
Fourth runner-up was Rio Snyder, who was not present for the coronation. Following all of the scored stages of the competition, and after being announced as one of the top five finalists, she suffered a health event and was cared for by three doctors present in the audience, while the performance was paused. She was taken by ambulance to the Brookings hospital and was released later in the evening. Rio is from Black Hawk, and received a $2,000 scholarship plus a $500 STEM award.
Rounding out the top ten semi-finalists, each receiving a $750 scholarship, were Margaret Samp, Emily Deinken and Julia Stanek, all from Sioux Falls as well as Maleah Eschenbaum and Madisen Vetter, both from Aberdeen.
Miss SDSU Katherine Milbrandt won the most talented non-semifinalist ($250 award). Loretta Simon of Sioux Falls was voted Miss Congeniality by her fellow contestants ($500). Javonte Madsen, Rapid City, had the top interview for a non-semifinalist ($250.)
Twenty women from across the state competed for the title. All won scholarships, totaling nearly $45,000. Each of the non-semi-finalists received a $500 scholarship.
O’Bryan will represent South Dakota at the Miss America Competition in early 2024.
The top five finalists at Miss South Dakota 2023 (l to r): Payton Steffensen, Rio Snyder, Carly Goodhart, Miranda O’Bryan, Baylee Dittman.
Courtesy photo.
JUNE 2, 2023:
Miss Central States Fair, Madisen Vetter of Aberdeen, and Miss Dakota Prairie, Carly Goodhart of Sioux Falls, took home preliminary awards at the Miss South Dakota Competition Thursday night (June 1, 2023).
Vetter won the preliminary talent competition singing “For Good,” from the Broadway musical Wicked. The talent award is $1,000. Vetter attends the University of South Dakota, majoring in Political Science and Legal Studies.
Miss Dakota Prairie Carly Goodhart took the Preliminary Onstage Conversation award of $500, after answering a question about her community service initiative, “Woman Up.” Goodhart graduated from South Dakota State University and is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Nursing: Neonatal Clinical Nurse Specialist from East Carolina University. She is working as the Neonatal Program Specialist at Sanford Children’s Hospital.
The competition continues tonight at 6:00 p.m. with the finals and the crowning of the 76th Miss South Dakota at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center at South Dakota State University.
Tickets and information on the Saturday evening livestream are available at https://www.misssd.org/.
MAY 24, 2023:
Twenty women– including McKayla Gunderson of Pierre and Loretta Simon from Seneca– will compete June 1-3, 2023, for nearly $45,000 in cash and scholarships and the role of Miss South Dakota. The winner will take home at least $8,000 in scholarships and awards and will represent South Dakota at the Miss America Competition.
McKayla Gunderson.
Courtesy photo.
Loretta Simon.
Courtesy photo.
This year’s competition has an expanded age range, a new talent option and a return to the physical fitness competition. The age limit, previously 18 to 25, has been extended to 19 to 28. And a new talent category, “HERStory,” is a 90-second TED-talk style presentation for candidates who do not wish to perform a more traditional talent. Physical fitness is back- candidates will not compete in swimsuits, but in active wear, in a segment designed to showcase the overall impression of health and fitness commitment by each candidate.
The pageant will feature Hunter Widvey, Miss South Dakota 2022. Hunter represented South Dakota at the Miss America Competition in December 2022 at the Mohegan Sun in Connecticut. She spent the year advocating for her community service initiative, “Childhood Cancer Awareness,” and will attend medical school this fall.
Hunter Widvey.
Courtesy photo.
The candidates will be judged on a private interview with the judges (30%), talent/HERStory™ (20%), health and fitness (20%) evening gown (20%) and on-stage conversation (10%).
The 2023 Miss South Dakota’s Teen competition will be held in conjunction with the Miss competition Thursday and Friday evenings, with the new Miss South Dakota’s Teen being crowned at the conclusion of Friday’s event.
Candidates whose hometowns are in other states are attending college or working in South Dakota. The young women competing are (name, age, title, hometown, talent, and community service initiative):
- McKayla Gunderson, 21, Miss Huron, Pierre, Talent: Vocal and Ukulele, Community Service Initiative: Employment Awareness for Teenagers and Young Adults
- Loretta Simon, 23, Miss Dakota Plains, Seneca, Talent: Vocal, Community service initiative: Change Your Mind
- Baylee Dittman, 27, Miss Rapid City, Spearfish, Talent: HERStory™, Community service initiative: Breaking the Barcode: Ending Human Trafficking
- Breanna Bossman, 21, Miss McCrory Gardens, Humboldt, Talent: Dance, Community service initiative: Meet the Need: National Blood Shortage
- Carly Goodhart, 27, Miss Dakota Prairie, Sioux Falls, Talent: HERStory™, Community service initiative: Woman Up: Upping the Education and Access to Women’s Health
- Elisa Swartz, 22, Miss Rushmore, Lincoln, NE, Talent: Piano, Community service initiative: Empowering Women in STEM
- Emily Deinken, 24, Miss Sioux Falls, Sioux Falls, Talent: Flute, Community service initiative: Changing Classroom Culture: Advocate for Educators
- Javonte Madsen, 19, Miss Hot Springs, Rapid City, Talent: Vocal/Ukulele, Community service initiative: Why Fit in When You Were Born to Stand Out?
- Jensine Matson, Miss Rolling Plains, 19, Ramona, Talent: Monologue, Community service initiative: Child Sexual Assault Awareness
- Julia Stanek, Miss Clay County Fair, 19, Sioux Falls, Talent: Poetic monologue, Community service initiative: Eating Disorder Awareness and Prevention
- Katherine Milbrandt, Miss SDSU, 21, Hudson, WI, Talent: Dance and gymnastics, Community service initiative: Stop the Stigma | Start the Conversation
- Laney Titze, 20, Miss State Fair, Mitchell, Talent: Piano, Community service initiative: Art for All, Inc.
- Madisen Vetter, 19, Miss Central States Fair, Aberdeen, Talent: Vocal, Community service initiative: Women in Government
- Maleah Eschenbaum, 23, Miss Brookings, Aberdeen, Talent: American Sign Language Interpretation, Community service initiative: D/deaf: More Than Looks
- Margaret Samp, 21, Miss Hub City, Sioux Falls, Talent: Classical Vocal, community service initiative: Beyond Dyslexia Inc.
- Miranda O’Bryan, 24, Miss Missouri River, Martin, Talent: Vocal, Community service initiative: Page Turners: Fall in Love with Reading
- Molly Crawford, 20, Miss Fall River Balloon Festival, Danville, KY, Talent: Poetry, Community service initiative: Foster Kits: Welcome Home and Mean It
- Olivia Granaas, 21, Miss USD, Vermillion, Talent: Dance, Community service initiative: Upward Bound
- Payton Steffensen, 20, Miss Railroad Junction, Sioux Falls, Talent: Self-Choreographed Musical Theatre Dance, Community service initiative: Dream Team
- Rio Snyder, 19, Miss Siouxland, Black Hawk, Talent: Lyrical Dance, Community service initiative: Lift Your Health
All competitions are at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center on the South Dakota State University campus in Brookings. The competition finals on Saturday will also be available on livestream. Ticket information for in-person events as well as the livestream available at https://www.misssd.org/.
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