Miss Indiana USA
The Miss Indiana USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state of Indiana in the Miss USA pageant and the name of the title held by those representatives. This pageant is currently produced by Crown Moxie, headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.
The pageant is currently held in Noblesville and has previously been hosted by Anderson, Michigan City, Indianapolis, Carmel and Fort Wayne.
Nine Miss Indiana USA winners have previously held the Miss Indiana Teen USA title and competed at Miss Teen USA, and three previously competed in other states (Florida, Georgia and Virginia). Three Miss Indiana-USA winners (1987, 2002, and 2023) have also previously competed at Miss America.
The most recent placement was Alexis Lete in 2020, who finished 3rd runner-up.
Stephanie Sullivan from Elkhart, was chosen as Miss Indiana-USA 2024 on June 8, 2024 in Indianapolis. She will represent Indiana at the Miss USA 2024 pageant.
Gallery of titleholders
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Alexis Lete, Miss Indiana USA 2020
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Mekayla Diehl, Miss Indiana USA 2014
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Allison Biehle, Miss Indiana USA 2010
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Brittany Mason, Miss Indiana USA 2008
Results summary
Placements
- 1st runners-up: Holli Rene Dennis (1981)
- 2nd runners-up: Elaine L. Richards (1966), Kelly Ann Lloyd (2002)
- 3rd runners-up: Jayme Buecher (1978), Alexis Nicole Lete (2020)
- Top 10/12: Virginia Ann Johnson (1952), Jo Berryman (1975), Holly Roehl (1996), Pratima Yarlagadda (1999), Tashina Kastigar (2003), Brittany Mason (2008)
- Top 16/19/20: Cecilia Dennis (1954), Sue Ekamp (1962), Jillian Wunderlich (2011), Mekayla Diehl (2014)
Indiana holds a record of 15 placements at Miss USA.
Special awards
- Best State Costume: Heather Gray (1992)
- Miss Photogenic: Gretchen Reece (2015)
- Miss Congeniality: Tate Elizabeth Fritchley (2019)
Winners
- Color key
- Declared as Winner
- Ended as runner-up
- Ended as one of the finalists or semifinalists
Year | Name | Hometown | Age | Local Title | Placement at Miss USA | Special awards at Miss USA | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | Stephanie Sullivan | Elkhart | 33 | Miss Elkhart County | |||
2023 | Haley Jordan Begay | Pittsboro | 25 | Miss Central Indiana |
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2022 | Samantha Paige Toney | Greenwood | 27 | Miss Clarksville |
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2021 | A'Niyah Monae Birdsong | Anderson | 26 | Miss Anderson | Shortest reigning Miss Indiana USA (8 months and 15 days) | ||
2020 | Alexis Lete | New Albany | 23 | 3rd runner-up | Longest reigning Miss Indiana USA (1 year, 8 months, and 7 days) | ||
2019 | Tate Elizabeth Fritchley | Evansville | 20 | Miss Congeniality |
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2018 | Darrian Rachel Arch | Chesterton | 23 |
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2017 | Brittany Winchester | Indianapolis | 26 | ||||
2016 | Meryssa Morgan Abel | North Vernon | 26 |
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2015 | Gretchen S. Reece | North Vernon | 23 | Miss Photogenic | |||
2014 | Mekayla Diehl | Bristol | 25 | Top 20 |
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2013 | Emily Hart | Fort Wayne | 25 | ||||
2012 | Megan Myrehn | Carmel | 20 |
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2011 | Jillian Wunderlich | Kokomo | 19 | Top 16 |
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2010 | Allison Biehle | North Vernon | 21 | ||||
2009 | Courtni Hall | Crawfordsville | 20 |
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2008 | Brittany Mason | Anderson | 21 | Top 10 |
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2007 | Jami Stallings | Newburgh | 20 |
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2006 | Bridget Bobel | Peru | 26 |
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2005 | Kaitlyn Christopher | Kokomo | 18 | ||||
2004 | Stephanie Keusch | Jasper | 24 | ||||
2003 | Tashina Kastigar | West Terre Haute | 22 | Semi-finalist |
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2002 | Kelly Lloyd | Indianapolis | 25 | 2nd runner-up | "Triple Crown" winner
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2001 | Sarah McClary | Evansville | 22 |
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2000 | Kristal Wile | Anderson | 23 | ||||
1999 | Pratima Yarlagadda | Shipshewana | 22 | Semi-finalist | |||
1998 | Nicole Llewellyn | Munster | 23 |
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1997 | Tricia Nosko | Evansville | 25 | ||||
1996 | Holly Roehl | 23 | Semi-finalist |
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1995 | Heather Hart | Newburgh |
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1994 | Kim Scull | Clarksville | |||||
1993 | Lisa Higgins | South Bend | |||||
1992 | Heather Gray | Best State Costume | |||||
1991 | Cathi Bennett | New Albany | 24 | ||||
1990 | Meri Lyn Buker | Kokomo | 24 | ||||
1989 | Gwen Rachelle Volpe | Griffith | 22 | ||||
1988 | Loetta Earnest | East Chicago | 22 | ||||
1987 | Alecia Rae Masalkoski | Bremen |
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1986 | Diane Andrysiak | South Bend | |||||
1985 | Theresa Hobbs | Wilmington | |||||
1984 | Susan Willardo | Highland | |||||
1983 | Antoniette (Toni) Marie Yudt | Portage | |||||
1982 | Sara Binkley | Greencastle | |||||
1981 | Holli Rene Dennis | Fort Wayne | 1st runner-up | ||||
1980 | Susan Osby | Hebron | Former State director from 1990 to 1998 | ||||
1979 | Deborah Hayes | Kokomo | |||||
1978 | Jayme Buecher | New Albany | 3rd runner-up | ||||
1977 | Lynn Flaherty | Nappanee | |||||
1976 | Annette Anderson | Gary | |||||
1975 | Jo Ellen Berryman | Kokomo | 24 | Semi-finalist | Non-finalist at Miss World USA 1974 | ||
1974 | Lisa Childress | Spencer | 20 | ||||
1973 | Debbie Ausenbaugh | Merrillville | |||||
1972 | Julie Clifford | Edwardsport |
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1971 | Debra Dee Downhour | Cassville | 21 | ||||
1970 | Mary Ann McBride | Michigan City | |||||
1969 | Linda Smith | ||||||
1968 | Nikki Peck | Hammond | |||||
1967 | Pamela Jo Talmadge | Hammond | 19 | During her reign, Pamela, who was adopted, was reunited with her older siblings (two brothers and a sister) after nearly 19 years being apart. | |||
1966 | Elaine L. Richards | Merrillville | 2nd runner-up | Died age 41 on June 26, 1984 in Florida after a long illness | |||
1965 | Did not compete | ||||||
1964 | Charlene Kratochvil | Kokomo | 19 | ||||
1963 | Vickie Little | ||||||
1962 | Sue Ekamp | Mishawaka | Semi-finalist | ||||
1961 | Janice Kay Oliver | Indianapolis | 18 | ||||
1960 | June Cochran | Indianapolis | 18 |
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1959 | Anita Watkins | ||||||
1958 | Shirley Ball | ||||||
1957 | Patricia (Pat) Dorsett | Indianapolis | |||||
1956 | Beverly Mattox | ||||||
1955 | Mary Wasick | ||||||
1954 | Cecilia Dennis | Milan | Semi-finalist | ||||
1953 | Edith Mae Krumme | Seymour | |||||
1952 | Virginia Ann Johnson | Semi-finalist |
- ^ Age at the time of the Miss USA pageant
References
- ^ "Carmel in brief- November 1, 2016". Current in Carmel. 1 November 2016.
- ^ "New Miss Indiana USA". The Kokomo Tribune. 8 March 1980. p. 24.
- ^ "New Albany Woman Miss Indiana USA". Logansport Pharos-Tribune. 27 November 1990. p. 4.
- ^ Carey, Tom (27 February 1990). "High-tech beauty pursuing dream". The Kokomo Tribune.
- ^ "New Miss Indiana crowned". WTHR. 8 June 2024. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
- ^ "Miss USA 2019: Evansville native Tate Fritchley appears in pageant". Evansville Courier & Press. Retrieved 2019-07-15.
- ^ "Miss Indiana USA Named Miss Congeniality". 44News | Evansville, IN. 2019-05-14. Archived from the original on 2019-07-03. Retrieved 2019-07-15.
- ^ "Indiana State Fair Crowns Its 2016 Queen". WFYI. January 11, 2016. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
- ^ Ellison, Jillian (28 April 2017). "Miss Indiana talks skin cancer, national competition".
- ^ McClure, Julie (3 June 2016). "North Vernon native competes for Miss USA". The Republic.
- ^ Higgins, Will (9 June 2014). "Miss Indiana Mekayla Diehl: I'm OK with 'normal'". Indy Star.
- ^ Sloma, Tricia (5 June 2014). "Native American roots provide strength for local Miss USA hopeful". WNDU.
- ^ Leach, Robin (30 May 2017). "Beauty queen, ex-Las Vegas model Brittany Mason runs Ireland pageant". Las Vegas Review-Journal.
- ^ "Staff". Archived from the original on November 26, 2010. Retrieved July 10, 2010.
- ^ "Shipshewana woman wins crown". The Kokomo Tribune. 2 November 1998. p. 2.
- ^ "Munster woman wins title". The Kokomo Tribune. 23 June 1997. p. 3.
- ^ "Miss Indiana crowned". Logansport Pharos-Tribune. 7 December 1987. p. 6.
- ^ "Indiana girl in Miss USA pageant". Rushville Republican. 30 April 1973. p. 5.
- ^ "The Spokesman-Review - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 2020-05-13.
- ^ "Cass Girl Crowned". The Logansport Press. 22 April 1971. p. 1.
- ^ ""Miss Indiana" in pageant". The Newark Advocate. 19 May 1970. p. 6.
- ^ Associated Press (1984-06-30). "Elaine Richards". Daytona Beach Morning Journal.