Meet the new Miss Indiana

MerrieBeth Cox Crowned Miss Indiana 2012

 

Zionsville, IN, Saturday, June 23, 2012:  MerrieBeth Cox of Roselle, IL, was crowned Miss Indiana 2012 tonight at the Zionsville High School Performing Arts Center in Zionsville, Indiana.

 

MerrieBeth previously held the title of Miss Duneland and was crowned in Michigan City. She is 21 years old and student at Purdue University majoring in physical education. MerrieBeth’s talent is baton twirling and she won a preliminary talent award earlier in the week for her twirling/gymnastics routine to "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend. Her platform is Overcoming Challenges. MerrieBeth will represent Indiana at the Miss America Pageant in Las Vegas in January of 2013.

 

RUNNERS UP

First runner-up to Miss Indiana was Miss Banks of the Wabash, Audra Casterline, 21, of Fishers; 2nd runner-up was Miss Wabash Valley Mekayla Diehl, 23, of Bristol, 3rd runner-up was Miss Purdue University, Brittany Smith, 22, of Elmhurst, IL and 4th runner-up was Miss Metropolitan, Megan Thwaites, 20, of Garrett.

 

A record-breaking thirty-two young women between the ages of 17 and 24, from all over Indiana, competed this week in two preliminary nights of competition in talent, lifestyle and fitness in swimwear, evening wear and onstage question, and all had a ten-minute private interview with judges. From this, a Top 11 group of finalists was named at the beginning of tonight’s competition.

 

For the third year, fans were able to vote online for a favorite contestant who was then named the Peoples’Choice 12 ^th Semi-Finalist and competed in tonight’s final competition. Miss Indiana South, Gretchen Reece, 20, of North Vernon was named the Peoples’Choice Semi-Finalist. The remaining Semi-Finalists were Miss Central Indiana, Hannah Clingan, 22, of Covington, Miss Ball State University, Courtney Jurick, 22, of Valparaiso, Miss Three Rivers Festival, Rachael Bazzell, 23, of New Carlisle, Miss Harvest Homecoming, Paige Conrad, 20, of Sellersburg, Miss Indiana State University, Ayanna Sykes, 20, of Terre Haute and Miss Southern Heartland, Carolyne Holcomb, 23, of Terre Haute.

 

Megan Meadors, Miss Indiana 2008, and Jim Robbins presented the “Joy of Life”Award, in honor and memory of Joy Robbins, a dear friend of the Miss Indiana Organization. This year’s winner, who was anonymously chosen, based upon her essay, was Mekayla Diehl.

 

Other awards were presented to Megan Thwaites and Hannah Clingan for Outstanding Interview, Miss Fort Wayne Christine Borne, 24, of Fort Wayne, for Non-Finalist Interview and Miss South Bend Kathleen Raab, 21, of South Bend won Non-Finalist Talent for her vocal rendition of“O Mio Babbino Caro”by Puccini.

 

The Children’s Miracle Network “Miracle Maker”Award was presented to Carolyne Holcomb. The John Price Community Service Award went to Miss Northeast, Rebecca Kain, 18, of Orland, the Hoosier Leadership Award went to Hoosier Heartland Alyssa Slater, 21, of Evansville, and the Arts in Action Dance Award went to MerrieBeth Cox. Miss Hoosier Valley, Katelyn Marak, 18, of Valparaiso received the Newcomer Award. 

 

The Miss America Academic Award went to Miss IPFW Kristin Music, 21, of Brownsburg and the Miss America Community Service Award went to Paige Conrad. Carolyne Holcomb was named Miss Congeniality.

 

Jackie Jerlecki, Miss Indiana 2011, passed on the crown tonight to thr 73 ^rd Miss Indiana. Jackie, of Goshen, is a graduate of Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio. 

 

More information about the Miss Indiana Scholarship Pageant is available at www.missindianapageant.com

 

You can also stay constantly up-to-date by joining the Miss Indiana Pageant Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/MissIndianaPageant or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/MissINPageant

 

Miss Indiana and Miss Indiana's Outstanding Teen are official state pageants of the Miss America Organization, one of the nation's leading achievement programs and the world's largest provider of scholarship assistance for young women. More information about Miss America can be found at www.missamerica.org .