Sleepy Eye FFA Competes at SDSU’s Little I Contest
The Sleepy Eye FFA Milk Quality and Products Team was the Top Scoring Sleepy Eye Team that attended the Little I Competition at SDSU in Brookings. The team placed 4th out of 24 teams. Pictured l to r – front: Aubree Rathman, Kendall Haala, Jace Schauman, Megan Sellner. Back: Ava Kunkel, Callie Evers, Jaelynnn Schauman, Lily Uys, Carter Lazatin.
29 Sleepy Eye FFA members competed at South Dakota State University’s 102nd Little International Judging Contest, which took place on Friday, March 28th, 2025. This contest, commonly known as Little I, is one the largest career development event (CDE) contests with FFA members attending from Minnesota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Iowa. Sleepy Eye FFA members competed against hundreds of other FFA members in order to prepare for their upcoming Region and State CDE contests in April.
The Milk Quality and Products Team placed the highest out of all of the Sleepy Eye Teams earning 4th place out of 24 teams. This contest consists of members identifying cheese and dairy products, milk defects, and taking a knowledge test. Megan Sellner was the Top Scorer on the team, earning 4th place individually. Other team members included: Carter Lazatin, Jaelynn Schauman, Callie Evers, Jace Schauman, Ava Kunkel, Lily Uys, Aubree Rathman, and Kendall Haala.
The Dairy Judging Team from Sleepy Eye placed 5th out of 26 teams at the competition. In this CDE, participants evaluate dairy cattle as well as answer questions about characteristics of the cattle in the classes. Jared Portner was the top finisher for the team, placing 4th individually. Other team members included: Dustin Portner, Rachel Portner and Isaac Christensen.
The Sleepy Eye Meats Team placed 12th out of 39 teams. Competing on the Meats CDE team from Sleepy Eye at the contest were Yuri Fernandez, who was the high scorer for the team, Makayla Strong, Ari Krzmarzick, Emerson Johnson, Alex Confer, and Zack Dominguez. In this CDE, members judge quality yield and grade of beef, lamb, and pork carcasses; they also complete a written test and identify various types of meat.
The Poultry Team placed 13th out of 21 teams. Mateo Hornsby was the Top Scorer on the team. Other team members included: Kayden Klein, Ava Sellner, and Carsten Nienhaus. For this contest, members identify parts and judge chicken carcasses, judge interior and exterior eggs, boneless and bone in processed chicken parts, as well as take a knowledge exam.
The Horse Team placed 15th out of 40. Kenedi Wersal earned the Top Scorer on the Sleepy Eye Team. Other team members included: Breanna Lopez, Millie Lax, Leah Kucera, and Paola Gonzalez. For this contest, members place different classes of horses and take a knowledge exam.
The Livestock Evaluation Team from Sleepy Eye also competed and earned 31st place out of 68 teams. Competitors in this CDE judge swine, sheep, goats, and beef, looking for the ideal animals for breeding or market. Ethan Hinderman was the leading scorer from the Sleepy Eye team. Other members of the team included Kylie Fischer, Ruby Tauer, and Catherine Simonsen.
By participating at this competition, students improved their skills in their CDE’s and the students will be better prepared for the regional and state competitions, which will be held later in April.
