Aggies take K-State contest

By NCTA News

NCTA Aggies tested their agronomy knowledge Saturday and again came back to their Curtis campus with a first-place plaque and the top three placings for individual contestants.

The Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture led points among three 2-year colleges in the KSU Crop Judging Contest at Manhattan.

Seven 4-year colleges also competed in the competition hosted by Kansas State University, reported Agronomy Professor Brad Ramsdale who coaches the Aggie team.

Ahren Marburger of Malvern, Iowa, won first place overall in the four-part contest for 2-year contestants. He also was first in the Lab Practical.

Koltyn Forbes of Grand Island took second place overall and was first in the Plant and Seed ID. Allison Wilkens of Gibbon placed third overall and won first in the Math Practical.

The fourth team member of the winning team was Aggie Codi LaBorde of Milliken, Colorado. Competing unofficially was Aggie Garrett Thielen of Dorrance, Kansas.

“The team has continued to work very hard at improving their agronomic knowledge and identification skills, which is evident in the results,” said Ramsdale.

“Kansas State always has a very challenging contest and provides a great learning experience for the students.”

Contests have four categories which are required criteria for Certified Crop Advisors. The Aggies won firsts in Lab Practical, Math Practical and Plant and Seed ID. The fourth is Agronomic Practical.

On March 31-April 2, the Aggies host contests for the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture (NACTA) national events. As hosts, the Aggies are not eligible to compete for awards.

Part of the University of Nebraska system, the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture is a two-year institution with a statewide mission of preparing students for successful careers in agriculture, veterinary technology and related industries. NCTA is known for its affordable tuition, high job-placement rate for its graduates, and for the success of student teams in competitive activities including crops judging, ranch horse events, livestock judging, shotgun sports, stock dog trials, and intercollegiate rodeo. The college is consistently ranked as one of the best two-year schools in the nation.