LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Twenty-six youth ages 9 to 20 from 13 states were crowned champions at the 2024 All-American Junior Jersey Show recently in Louisville. The event was sponsored by the American Jersey Cattle Association and attracted youth from across the nation.

In all, 169 youth exhibited 280 Registered Jerseys during the Nov. 8 show, the largest junior show since 1987 for the All-American Junior Jersey Show.

While most youth yearn to just place in this prestigious event, Sophia Bollenbacher, of Argos, Ind., walked away with four class titles: Spring Yearling Heifer, Winter Yearling Heifer and Summer Junior Two-Year-Old Cow (All-American winner for all three) and Aged Cow (Junior Reserve All-American).

During that weekend Bollenbacher added more honors, receiving 5th place for the Jersey Youth Production Contest as well as 10th in the Jersey Youth Achievement Contest. She also captured the Premier Breeder and Exhibitor banners of The All American Junior Jersey Show. 

“I still get nervous in the ring,” she admits. “When you work so hard with an animal you want it to shine. You only get that one shot. It helps that I come from a competitive family. We like to push each other, whether it’s showing the animals or in sports.” She competes with and shares the farm chores with her two older brothers and younger sister.

Bollenbacher has participated nationally with her Jerseys. She is an alumnus of Jersey Youth Academy, top 10 in the national achievement contest, and a multi-year National Jersey Youth Production Contest award winner.

Bollenbacher, 21, is a junior at Purdue University. She is a member of the Purdue Dairy Club and is pursuing a degree in animal science with a concentration in production in industry. She is an active member of the Sigma Alpha professional agricultural sorority. Bollenbacher is a graduate from Class VIII of Jersey Youth Academy.

“Advocating for the dairy industry has always been important to me,” she said. “I’m proud to advocate for the sustainability of the Jersey cow. Many people don’t realize the dairy industry has been ‘green before green was cool.’  Over the years, Jerseys eat less, excrete less and take up less space than other breeds while remaining efficient athletes.”

On the subject of athletics, Bollenbacher was quite the athlete in high school. She attended Argos Community Junior/Senior High, where she was also a four-year varsity basketball starter on a team that made it to the Indiana Sweet 16 her senior season. She was three-year varsity soccer player for the Dragons, a team that was a three-time sectional champion and state runners-up her senior season.

She served as her FFA chapter’s vice president and secretary during her four years at Argos Community. In 4-H, she was a 10-year member working with swine and a nine-year member working with poultry.

“I’m still learning what path I want to take,” she said. “I’m very passionate about the dairy industry. I love giving back. And, I definitely want to stay involved with FFA. Coming from such a small school we didn’t have the biggest FFA chapter.”

Sophia is the daughter of Max and Carrie Jo Bollenbacher, of Argos. Max and Carrie Jo are no strangers to the show ring themselves and have won numerous awards at national Jersey shows over the years.

Dairying and breeding Jerseys has been a part of Max’s family for more than 100 years, beginning with his great-grandfather, Brayton Pyle. When Max graduated from high school, he began milking 25 Jerseys of his own, as well as 15 others belonging to fellow Indiana Jersey breeders.

Max married Carrie Jo in 1997 and moved his Jerseys into Carrie’s family’s herd of 150 Holsteins not long after. Max eventually became herd manager of 600 head of cattle.

“I’m now in farm partnership with my grandparents, Mike and Jan Heckaman,” Sophia said. “Together we milk 500 Holsteins and 200 Jerseys.”

Other top two winners at All-American Junior Jersey Show from the Farm World readership area include Samantha Heinzmann, of Carlyle, Ill. (Winter Heifer Calf, Reserve All-American winner); Jackson Powers, of Salvisa, Ky. (Milking Winter Yearling, All-American Winner); Blake Greiwe, of Quincy, Ohio (Junior Two-Year-Old Cow, All-American Winner); Abigail Gordon, of Syracuse, Ind. (Junior Two-Year-Old Cow, Reserve All-American Winner); and Eli Horswill, of Middlebury, Ind. (Milking Yearling, Reserve All-American winner).

The top five in each of 15 categories were also honored that day:

Jackson Powers was fourth in the Senior Two-Year-Old class and third in the Junior Three-Year-Old class.

Kendall Thomas, of North Lewisburg, Ohio, was third in Spring Heifer class. Lauren Albright, of Willard, Ohio, was third in Fall Heifer Calf class. In the Spring Yearling Heifer class, Harrison Pagel, of Sumner, Iowa, was third and Kara Leasman, of Golden, Ill., was fifth.

Cade Bachelor, of Angola, Ind., finished fifth in the Winter Yearling Heifer class; Riley Zoellner, of Pontiac, Ill., finished fourth in Milking Winter Yearling; Rhea Miller, of Oldenburg, Ind., was fourth in the Milking Yearling class; Emily Graybill, of Dakota, Ill., was fifth in Summer Junior Two-Year-Old; and Eli Graybill, of Freeport, Ill., was third in Junior Two-Year-Old class. Eli was also fifth in the Five-Year-Old class. Lilly Elsass, of Waynesville, Ohio, was fourth in the Junior Three-Year-Old class.

Breanne Freeman, of Breman, Ind., finished third in the Four-Year-Old class while Allison Graves, of Morristown, Tenn., was fourth in Aged Cow class.

Awards in Junior Showmanship went to Kendall Thomas (second place, Ohio), Eli Arp (third, Ohio) and Luke Albright (fifth, Ohio). Awards in Intermediate Showmanship was awarded to Lauren Albright (second, Ohio) and Cade Bachelor (fifth, Indiana). Senior Showmanship awards went to Blake Greiwe (second, Ohio) and Sophia Bollenbacher (fourth, Indiana).