(To receive a photo of the team to accompany this story, e-mail a request to jjm29@psu.edu)

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State's poultry judging team took home second place overall at the 41st National Collegiate Poultry Judging Contest in Fayetteville, Ark. recently.

The team placed in the top three at national competitions in three straight years. "This is truly a great accomplishment," says J. Marcos Fernandez, associate dean for undergraduate education in the College of Agricultural Sciences. "The outstanding performance of these students reflects their quality and commitment to the team and to the college."

Teams from 12 colleges and universities competed in two divisions: "egg production and quality" and "breed selection and carcass quality." The Penn State team placed first in egg production and quality, and second in breed selection and carcass quality.

Texas A&M University placed first overall, followed by Penn State and Kansas State University.

Penn State senior Amanda Goddard, from Clements, Md., was the highest overall individual in the competition, and senior Andrew Herr of Millersville placed fourth. The other team members are senior Megan Lighty from West Chester and senior Robyn Wirth from Orefield.

"The team worked really hard, and it was a great feeling to have that pay off," says Lighty, an animal sciences major.

The success at the fall competition followed the team's second-place finish at the national spring competition at Louisiana State University.

"The fact that Penn State teams are consistently among the best in the region and nation speaks very highly of our students, as well as the supportive faculty and staff that work with and mentor these students," Fernandez says.

Herr says he appreciates the fact that the College of Agriculture Sciences supports opportunities for students to showcase their abilities and represent their school.

"Even though we are a much smaller program than some of the other schools we compete with, we are diligent and receive excellent teaching and guidance from our professors and instructors," Herr, animal sciences major, says.

"This team is important to the College of Agricultural Sciences because it shows everyone, both on and off campus, that we are serious about poultry science and the poultry industry," says Wirth, who is an animal sciences major.

Goddard says that through the efforts of the team, faculty and staff, the Penn State poultry science department has become a very recognizable force at the collegiate judging level.

"Judging is more than just giving product a grade," says the agribusiness management major. "We learned a lot about the importance of teamwork."

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Writer: Bethany Fehlinger Editor: Jeff Mulhollem 814-863-2719 jjm29@psu.edu