The Langford Area FFA Chapter moved quickly from National FFA Week into Career Development Event (CDE) competition, recently taking part in three contests with strong results across multiple categories, including the district competition where several teams and members punched their ticket to state later this month.
At the first CDE of the season in Redfield on March 6, Dylan Harmon placed 38th and Wyatt Nelson 44th in ag mechanics. The floriculture team earned third place, led by Autumn Wegleitner in fourth, followed by Abbie Hoines 18th, Josie Jensen 31st, Bailey Dwight 35th and Teegan Ries 64th. In horse evaluation, Breckette Zubke placed 29th and Brooklynn West 39th. The livestock evaluation team placed fourth, with Adaline Larson seventh, Mallory Snaza 11th, Aubrey Craig 46th and Tru Hagen 63rd. The meats evaluation team also placed third, with Regan Bruns third, Bradyn Small sixth and Ethan Jesz 39th. Lizzie Gustafson finished second in milk quality, with Beau Bertsch 41st. The natural resources team placed eighth, led by Ryker Bruns in 16th and Dane Horter in 24th. The vet science team placed fifth, with Caroline Bahr 18th, Cami Craig 20th, Josie VanderVorst 21st and Maddie Knebel 52nd.
At the March 13 contest in Groton, Harmon improved to 19th in ag mechanics. The floriculture team took first place, with Wegleitner earning the top individual honor. Other team members included Jensen 11th, Hoines 15th, Dwight 18th and Ries 38th. West and Zubke tied for 17th in horse evaluation. The livestock team placed 10th, led by Larson in 24th. The meats team again placed third, with Bruns fifth, Small sixth and Jesz 17th. The milk quality team placed third, with Gustafson second, Bertsch 24th and Farrah Holler 26th. The natural resources team placed third, with Horter fourth and Bruns 14th. The vet science team placed fourth, highlighted by Bahr’s third-place finish.
At Northwestern the next week, Harmon placed 29th and Nelson 56th in ag mechanics, with both advancing to districts. The floriculture team placed third, led by Hoines in fourth, followed by Dwight 13th, Wegleitner 15th, Jensen 27th and Ries 36th. The livestock team placed seventh, with Larson fifth, Snaza 32nd and Craig 34th. The meats team placed second, with Small seventh, Bruns eighth and Jesz 27th. The milk quality team placed ninth, with Gustafson second, Holler 33rd and Bertsch 40th. The natural resources team placed third, led by Bruns fifth and Horter seventh. The vet science team placed eighth, with VanderVorst 20th, Bahr 23rd, Slaba 37th, Craig 38th and Knebel 51st. Several teams and individuals qualified to advance to district competition.
At district competition, Langford Area FFA continued its strong showing, earning multiple top finishes and state qualifications. In ag mechanics, Dylan Harmon placed 10th to qualify for state, while Wyatt Nelson finished 42nd. The floriculture team placed seventh, with Josie Jensen qualifying for state with an eighth-place finish, followed by Autumn Wegleitner in 17th and Bailey Dwight in 20th. In horse evaluation, Breckette Zubke qualified for state with an eighth-place finish, while Brooklynn West placed 21st.
The livestock evaluation team placed sixth overall, with Adaline Larson placing ninth and Aubrey Craig 15th, both earning state berths. Mallory Snaza placed 27th and Tru Hagen 35th. The meats evaluation team claimed the district championship, qualifying for state as a team, with Regan Bruns taking first place individually, Bradyn Small fourth and Ethan Jesz 11th.
In milk quality, the team placed third to advance to state, led by Lizzie Gustafson’s first-place finish, along with Farrah Holler in 25th and Beau Bertsch in 26th. The natural resources team placed fifth, with Dane Horter finishing sixth and Ryken Burnett ninth to qualify for state, followed by Ryker Bruns in 18th and Eli Samson in 22nd.
The vet science team placed third to earn a trip to state, with Caroline Bahr placing ninth, Cami Craig 16th, Josie VanderVorst 19th and Zoe Slaba 32nd, all qualifying.
Langford Area FFA advisor AnnaMarie Sachs said the results reflect both growth and resilience within the chapter. “This year we saw a lot of changes for our teams with losing some of our really competitive individuals in the last year, but that didn’t stop these students from going out and showing we are a force within our district,” Sachs said. “With state coming up later in April, I am optimistic that our older students will continue to teach our younger members the ropes to continue the tradition we have started. Overall, these students have shown drive and dedication when competing and have given us one of our most award seasons yet and can’t wait to see what state brings.”
State competition is scheduled for April 20 through 22.
