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Jenny Myers admitted to being "a little nervous" as the Sidney high team faced judges at the Nebraska Envirothon State Championship on Saturday. But she did not let that interfere with the challenge at hand.
Sidney's team of Myers, Ryan Birner, Jaide Wachtel, Jessica Campbell and Logan Uhlir finished second in the event, just 10 points behind Concordia. They won two of the seven events that make up Envirothon and placed second in two more.
"It was fun researching the information and we presented it confidently," said Wachtel of the Special Oral Topic part of the competition, in which teams reported on sustainable agriculture. Sidney also topped the field in Range, testing their knowledge of native and non-native flora.
The championship pitted regional winners in competition at the Crane Trust Nature and Visitor's Center near Alda. Test questions on subjects such as soils, aquatics, forestry, wildlife and more sometimes required written responses. More often, however, the students needed to use observational skills, measure and calculate or develop a reasoned presentation to a panel of judges.
Sidney's team is coached in these skills by Pat Welch.
"What makes Envirothon different than other contests is the hands-on component and taking the test in teams," explained Jim Johnson, a Nebraska Association of Resources board member. "This provides real world experience by learning to work together to solve problems."
Aquatics and soils proved the most difficult categories for the Sidney team, although the participants recalled other stumbling blocks.
"The skunk skull was the hardest," Campbell said, recalling the Wildlife challenge, in which team members had to identify pelts, bones and tracks.
On the other hand, Sidney edged out Arapahoe and Concordia in Range and impressed the judges in the oral presentation on sustainable agriculture.
"Special Topic was my favorite," Birner said. "We killed everyone."
The top three teams--Newman Grove finished behind Sidney--receive recognition from the Nebraska Association of Resources Districts and prize money to be used at their discretion.
"It's great being part of such a skilled team," Uhlir said.
Envirothon State Championship Results
Concordia 1 297.50
Sidney 287.00
Newman Grove 269.00
Concordia 2 266.75
Arapahoe 262.75
Tri-County 256.25
Fullerton 254.50
North Bend 252.75
Burke 239.25
Bellevue West 230.25
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