FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The University of Arkansas soil judging team recently placed second in the Region IV Collegiate Soil Judging Contest in Ruidoso, New Mexico, with four individuals placing in the top 15.

The team, made up of students in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, and coached by Kris Brye, professor of applied soil physics in the Department of Crop, Soil, and Environmental Sciences, earned a spot in the national finals next semester. This is the seventh consecutive year Arkansas has advanced to the finals.

Team members are Rebecca Anderson, Ryder Anderson, Tyler Durre, Brad Hampson, Jeremy Jordan and Matt Sena. Ryder Anderson and Rebecca Anderson finished first and second, respectively, in the individual standings while Durre was ninth and Sena 14th.

"This year's team only had one returning soil judger, no one else had never competed in a soil judging contest before," said Brye. "Due to the inexperience, I was not sure what to expect. Individually and as a team, they exceeded my expectations, particularly with the top two finishers."

The regional was hosted by Texas Tech University.

Last year's team won the Region IV title at Tarleton State University in Stephenville, Texas, and went on to finish ninth in the country at the National Collegiate Soil Judging Contest at Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas. The top 10 finish was the second for Arkansas in 15 years.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture.

About the University of Arkansas: The University of Arkansas provides an internationally competitive education for undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 academic programs. The university contributes new knowledge, economic development, basic and applied research, and creative activity while also providing service to academic and professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the University of Arkansas among only 2 percent of universities in America that have the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the University of Arkansas among its top American public research universities. Founded in 1871, the University of Arkansas comprises 10 colleges and schools and maintains a low student-to-faculty ratio that promotes personal attention and close mentoring.