Miss Alabama USA and Miss Alabama Teen USA 2019 contestant commentary

Update: Congratulations to Miss Alabama USA 2019 Hannah McMurphy and Miss Alabama Teen USA 2019 Kalin Burt!

The second pageant being held this weekend is Miss Alabama USA & Teen USA.  Finals are on Saturday at 7.30 CST (8.30 EST) which means it will be being held pretty much concurrently with Miss Georgia USA!  I will still do my best to bring you updates from both.  The webcast link ishttp://www.pageantslive.com.

There are 37 Miss contestants and 33 Teens - Miss numbers are low end of normal for Alabama but Teen is their lowest since at least 2011.   One bit of trivia I'll highlight here and touch on later in this commentary... we have our first Teen who is competing in two states this state pageant season!  Not so long ago the rules were relaxed to allow contestants to compete in more than one state per season if they could prove at least 3 months residency in each.  
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Miss AL USA 2018 Hannah Brown will be returning to crown her successor after competing on the Bachelor with her sister RPM titleholder Miss NC USA 2018 Caelyn Miller-Keyes, who sadly missed passing on her title last month because she was still on the show.  Two-time Alabama runner-up Hannah Godwin also appeared on it this year!  Something in the water in Bama?

I'm very curious to see if this might be the year that the blonde streak is broken in Teen - since 2005, only one Miss Alabama Teen USA titleholder has not been a blonde!  As you can see, 2018 titleholder and Miss Congenaility winner at Miss Teen USA Kennedy Cromeens ​ continued that trend.  As unbelievable as that sounds, check out the Alabama titleholder history.  That said, some of my favourite Teens this year is blonde so we may see it continue for yet another year!

The 2019 winners will succeed 2018 titleholders Hannah Brown of Tuscaloosa and Kennedy Cromeens of Birmingham.
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In Miss, Miss Alabama Teen USA 2011 Barron Rae Williams (the only teen that disrupted the blonde streak!) is back after choosing not to compete last year.  Barron was second runner-up in 2017, first runner-up in 2016 (to her Teen successor Peyton Brown!), and top 10 in 2015.   Returning from last year's top five are first runner-up Taylor Jones, who was also one spot behind Barron finishing 3RU at Miss AL USA 2017, and who placed in the top 10 at Miss AL Teen USA 2013; and fourth runner-up Macy Hinds.  Last year's third runner-up (& another former AL Teen USA) Lorin Holcombe will be competing in Georgia this weekend.

Miss AL Teen USA 2016 fourth runner-up Brennen Cooke is competing in Miss for the first time, and another 2016 Teen runner-up Bayley Albinger, who was also fourth runner-up in 2017 and 2014, will be having her second attempt at the Miss title after finishing in the top 10 last year.  Bayley has competed in Miss or Teen every year since 2014 and made the top 10 or top 5 each year!  There hasn't been a titleholder from the Mobile area in either division since 2008 (& back to 1998 for the last Miss winner) so she would make a little bit of history were she to win.

Others returning from last year's top ten are Hannah McMurphy and Madison Gilmore.  Preslie Gifford made the top 10 in 2017.  None of the 2018 top 15 group are back but Shannon-Elizabeth Taylor who made the top 15 in 2017 is competing again.  Kristen Furr was a semi-finalist at Miss Mississippi USA 2014.

Since 2000 only four Miss Alabama USA winners were newcomers competing in their first USA pageant!

Taylor, Bayley, Preslie and a few other contestants all competed with newly crowned Miss Mississippi USA 2019 Madeleine Overby when she competed at Miss AL Teen USA from 2013 to 2015, it will be interesting to see if one of them will compete with her again at Miss USA!

Contestants mentioned above & others that caught my eye: Barron Rae Williams, Taylor Jones, Macy Hinds, Brennen Cooke, Bayely Albinger || Hannah McMurphy, Madison Gilmore, Preslie Gifford, Shannon-Elizabeth Taylor, Kristen Furr || Nwando Anwah, Rebekah Newton, Maleia Gist, McKenna Jackson, Iyana Diaz

In Teen I'm really excited to see first runner-up Kalin Burt and second runner-up Addison Watts back - last year's top three (all blonde! lol) was one of the most competitive I've seen in any recent Teen pageant.  As I mentioned earlier Alexis Fagan is competing for the Miss AL Teen title after placing fourth runner-up at Miss Michigan Teen USA a few months ago, in addition to being first runner-up in 2018, a semi-finalist in 2017 and third runner-up in 2016.  Alexis lives in Michigan & attends the University of Alabama, so is eligible to compete in both pageants.

Chaney Anderton is the only contestant returning ​from last year's top 10.  Two past top 15 finishers Kennedy Whisenant (2017 & 2018) and Katelyn Kirby (2017) are competing again this year.

​Quite rarely for Teen, the last five titleholders have all been returning runners-up.  

Contestants mentioned above & others that caught my eye: Kalin Burt, Addison Watts, Alexis Fagan, Kennedy Whisenant || Katelyn Kirby, Sara Herman, Christine Thompson, Parker Wilson, Hannah Snodgrass || Hannah Nolan, Hannah Henderson, Sophia Schifanella, Riley Pasibe, Katherine McIntyre

Click "read more" below right or scroll down for the full list of contestants with notes of past placements.
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Contestant lists

MISS ALABAMA USA 2019 CONTESTANTS (37)
​Nwando Anwah • Adamsville
McKenna Jackson • Auburn 
Lauren Norris • Central Alabama
Abby Brumfield • Chambers County
Kristen Furr • Crimson (NF 15, SF MS USA 14)
Kayla Smith • Cullman County
La’Jada Randle • East Alabama
Kaitlyn Hudson • Eufaula (NF 18, NF AL TUSA 11)
Bayley Albinger • Greater Mobile (T10 18, 4RU AL TUSA 17, 3RU 16, T10 15, 4RU 14)
Jordan Capers • Gulf Coast (NF AL TUSA 16) 
Madison Bethune • Huntsville
Hannah McMurphy • Indian Hills (T10 18, NF AL TUSA 17, NF 16)
Desharné Carroll • Jefferson County
Mary Paige Hunt • Lake Guntersville (NF AL TUSA 15)
Barron Williams • Lake Martin (2RU 17, 1RU 16, T10 15, AL TUSA 11, 1RU AL TUSA 10)
Riley Young • Lake Tuscaloosa
Jasmine Lee • Lee County (NF 17, NF AL TUSA 14, NF 12)
Cecilia Bates • Lowndes County
Kali Sturgis • Magic City
Tatum Alexis McCulley • Mccalla
Lexie Carleton • Montevallo (NF AL TUSA 16)
Shannon-Elizabeth Taylor • Montgomery (T15 17, NF 16)
Brennen Cooke • North Shelby County (4RU AL TUSA 16)
Kaylan Colvin • Opelika
Bailey Kennon • Orange Beach (NF 18)
Rebekah Newton • River Region (NF 18)
Caitlin Connor • Rocket City (NF 17)
Maleia Gist • Russellville
Alesha McNeese • State Line
Taylor Jones • Stillwaters (1RU 18, 3RU 17, T10 AL TUSA 13) 
Tiffany Hogue • Troy
Makenzie Tokes • Tuscaloosa
Madison Gilmore • United Southeast (T10 18)
Preslie Gifford • Valley Head (NF 18, T10 17, NF AL TUSA 15, NF 14, NF 13, T15 12)
Macy Hinds • Walker County (4RU 18)
Amanda Trawick • West Alabama
Iyana Diaz • Yellowhammer

MISS ALABAMA TEEN USA 2019 CONTESTANTS (33)
Kennedy Whisenant • Birmingham (T15 18, T15 17)
Angelica Vines • Bluff Park
Kelsey Woodard • Camelia
Katelyn Kirby • Capstone (NF 18, T15 17)
Aubrie Hall • Chilton County
Logan Mayo • Dothan
Lyndsi Barnes • Grand Bay
Sara Herman • Guntersville
Sally Mackey • Hale County (NF 15)
Christine Thompson • Heart of Dixie (NF 18)
Parker Wilson • Helena
Kalin Burt • Hoover (1RU 18)
Mackenzie Willoughby • Horseshoe Bend (NF 18)
Jayden Burrell • Jefferson County
Sydni Anderson • Lake Lay
Hannah Henderson • Lake Martin (NF 18)
Alexis Fagan • Lake Tuscaloosa (4RU MI TUSA 19, 1RU 18, SF 17, 3RU 16)
Hannah Nolan • Macon County
Hannah Snodgrass • Magic City
Margaret Anne McNeill • Montgomery County
Katherine Mcintyre • Montgomery
Hayden Ashby Smelley • Northport
Chaney Anderton • Oneonta (T10 18)
Addison Watts • Pelham (2RU 18)
Ellen Anne Singleton • River Region
Alison Hanna • Shelby County
Sophia Schifanella • Steel City
Olivia Taylor • Tuscaloosa County
Madison Powell • Tuscaloosa
Raley Madison Pasibe • United Southeast (NF 18)
Hannah Vines • Vestavia Hills
Anaya McCullum • Wetumpka
Kaylee-James Fuller • Yellowhammer (NF 18)

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