Teale Murdock and Dasha Semina, first runner-up in the Miss & Teen division respectively in both 2014 and 2015 will both be back again this year. Teale will be competing for the ninth time and would have aged out at the end of this year under the old rules - fortunately she will now have one more year if she doesn't take the title tonight. From when she first competed in Utah in 2009 she has only missed the top five once, in 2013. She was also a non-finalist at Miss TX Teen USA 2008.
All the runners-up from 2015 are back in the Miss division: in addition to Teale they are second runner-up Narine Ishhanov, semi-finalist in 2014 & non-finalist in 2013; third runner-up Andrea Jackson, also a semi-finalist in 2014 and 2013; and fourth runner-up Alecsy Christensen. From Virginia, two-time Teen runner-up Riley Copans is competing in her first Miss pageant.
Baylee Jensen, daughter of Miss USA 1989 Gretchen Polhemus Jensen is competing for the first time - wearing a modified version of her mum's prelim gown!
In Teen, Dasha is the only returning runner-up from last year, but Miss Idaho Teen USA 2014 second runner-up Kelsy Patrick is competing in Utah this year.
See also:
Miss Utah USA & Teen USA Titleholder History | Utah state pageant results
Click "read more" or scroll below for the full list of contestants with notes of past placements.
Contestants
Shona Seifert • Bountiful
Lorna Balfour • Capitol Hill
Teale Murdock • City Creek (1RU 15, 1RU 14, SF 13, 2RU 12, 4RU 11, 4RU 10, 4RU 09, NF TX TUSA 08)
Christa Hyde • Cottonwood Heights
Andrea Jackson • Emerald Lake (3RU 15, SF 14, SF 13, SF UT TUSA 12)
Nery Martinez • Great Salt Lake
Paris Fisher • Holladay (T10 15, SF 14, SF 13)
Riley Copans • Park City (2RU VA TUSA 13, 2RU 12)
McKenzie Jones • Provo
Cortni Beers • Red Rock
Mercedes Dritlein • Roy (NF 15)
Alecsy Christensen • Salt Lake City (4RU 15)
Leia Sergakis • Salt Lake County (SF 13, NF 12)
Jordan Halling • Sandy (T20 15, SF UT TUSA 12)
Baylee Jensen • South Jordan
Alayna Smith • South Provo
Chealsey Leach • South Weber (NF 14, NF 10)
Cassidy Pedersen • Sugar House
Narine Ishhanov • Utah County (2RU 15, SF 14, NF 13)
MISS UTAH TEEN USA (12)
Corinne VonStorch • Brighton Teen
Madelin Kellogg • Davis County Teen (SF 15)
Brooklyn Lang • Draper Teen
Sariah Pratt • Layton Teen
Diana Pogosyan • Mount Olympus Teen (SF 15)
AbbyJade Larson • North Logan Teen
Kelsy Patrick • Salt Lake City Teen (2RU ID TUSA 14)
Dasha Semina • Sandy Teen (1RU 15, 1RU 14)
Madison Baldwin • St. George Teen
Talia Hanks • Utah County Teen (NF 15)
Kayler Poglajen • Vernal Teen (NF 15)
Rachel Bell • Wasatch Front Teen