How local participants did at 107th annual Pennsylvania Farm Show
Somerset County residents excelled in their respective exhibitions at the 107th Pennsylvania Farm Show last week.
One of those successful exhibitors was Allie Zeigler, 18, of Shanksville, who won Supreme Market Master Showman in the Farm Show’s Junior Market Animals competition. The award includes a $500 check from the Luke Svonavec Memorial Supreme Champion Market Master Showmanship fund, which is presented at the Farm Show each year by the David and Elizabeth Svonavec family of Rockwood.
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“It’s always been a goal of mine to qualify for Supreme Market Showman,” Zeigler said. “Showmanship is something I take pride in, so it was cool to win (the title) at my state fair.”
Selecting a supreme showman
Showmanship is the way an exhibitor cares for, handles and trains an animal to prepare it for judging in the show ring.
Zeigler qualified for the supreme competition by winning the Market Lamb Showmanship award at the Farm Show. She showed Shaggy, her 10-month-old male market lamb, and Samuel, her 10-month-old male boer goat, this year.
In the Supreme Market Master Showman competition, Zeigler and the other nine candidates took a written test to show their knowledge about the meat quality of various market animals. Next, each competitor was judged as they showed five market animals in the exhibition ring — a steer, goat, lamb, pig and rabbit.
“The animals in the contest were animals from the grand drive,” she said, explaining that the competitors were given animals they hadn’t worked with before to see how they handle an unfamiliar animal in the show ring.
“I was very surprised,” she said about hearing her name called as Supreme Market Master Showman. “There are a lot of talented showmen in Pennsylvania, and I was hoping to do well. It was a good day.”
Her market goat also won the Reserve Grand Champion Junior Market Goat award, while her market lamb was named champion in division 2 for crossbred market lambs. Both animals qualified for and were sold at auction during the Farm Show’s 2023 Sale of Champions.
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Zeigler thanked her parents, Jamie and Erica Salsgiver, and other family members for their support, along with her friends Marshal Tewell, Forrest Ohler and Paige Ohler.
She said the friendships she’s made during the last five years exhibiting at the Pennsylvania Farm Show is her favorite part of the whole experience.
“What is good about the Farm Show is that I get to spend those days with my best friends,” she said.
She also enjoyed watching her best friend, Madaline Tewell from Artemas, Bedford County, and her market lamb win the Grand Champion Junior Market Lamb contest.
“We cheered each other on,” she said.
Zeigler said she plans to use the $500 she received with the Supreme Market Showman award to help buy another lamb and goat in the spring to raise.
“Goats are my favorite, they have the best personalities,” she said. “They’re either really sweet or really stubborn.”
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Other local results
Here is a listing of other local participants whose efforts were recognized at the Farm Show this year:
Junior Market Lamb
Kinley Dull, Friedens, Shropshire breed, champion
Faith Decker, Garrett, Other Purebreds, reserve champion
Lydia Geary, Adah, Hampshire breed, third place
Adalyn Geary, Adah, Crossbreds weight division 4, second place
Mataia Geary, Adah, Crossbreds weight division 15, sixth place
Samantha Hayman, Berlin, Crossbreds weight division 2, first place
Sophia Zambanini, Somerset, Crossbreds weight division 2, second place
Brody Dull, Friedens, Crossbreds weight division 20, first place
Junior Market Goat
Faith Decker, Garrett, weight division 13, first place and reserve champion, heavyweight goat
Kinley Dull, Friedens, weight division 14, first place; junior market goat showmanship, division 3, first place and grand champion, junior market goat showmanship
Brody Dull, Friedens, weight division 3, second place
Sophia Zambanini, Somerset, weight division 4, second place and junior market goat showmanship, division 4, sixth place
Junior Market Swine
Lydia Sheeler, Somerset, Yorkshire breed, reserve champion and Junior Swine Showmanship division 2, third place
Peyton Kister, Fairhope, Crossbreds weight division 4, first place and Junior Swine Showmanship division 4, second place
Maddie Engle, Garrett, Crossbreds weight division 7, third place and Junior Swine Showmanship division 1, first place
Layne Kister, Fairhope, Crossbreds weight division 11, fourth place
Christopher Engle, Garrett, Crossbreds weight division 13, third place and Junior Swine Showmanship division 2, sixth place
Kinley Dull, Friedens, Crossbreds weight division 14, third place
Rabbit Show
Sara Forry, Berlin, Breeding Rabbit Junior Showmanship, first place and Best of Breed in youth Standard. Forry also was selected as a finalist in the PA Preferred Junior Baking Competition, representing the Berlin Community Fair.
Skill-a-thon
Brody Dull, Friedens, Skill-a-thon Sheep, division 3, third place and Skill-a-thon Beef Cattle, division 3, fourth place
Kinley Dull, Friedens, Skill-a-thon Sheep, division 3, fourth place and Skill-a-thon Swine, division 3, fourth place
Emily Hutchison, Rockwood, Skill-a-thon Dairy Cattle, division 2, second place
Dairy Cattle, Open Show
Tara Hostetter-Evans, Rockwood, Junior 2-year-old, third place; cow, junior 3-year-old, first place; cow 5 years and over, second place; Exhibitor Herd, second place; Winter calf, third place; cow 4 years, second place and cow, senior 2-year-old, second place.
In addition to the above participants, Forbes Trail Brewing, of Stoystown, placed second in the class 4 beer category with its “Wheat Dreams” beer.
This article originally appeared on The Daily American: Somerset County residents excel in their divisions at 2023 PA Farm Show
