U of A Weed Science Team Wins 2021 Regional Championship

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The U of A weed science team includes (front, L to R) Maria Zaccaro, Mason Castner, Pamela Carvalho-Moore and Grant Priess, and (back) Tristen Avent. They are coached by CSES professors Nilda Burgos and Jason Norsworthy.

All five team members placed in the top 10 individually as the U of A weed science team captured first place in the Southern Weed Science Society Weed Contest in early August in Stoneville, Mississippi.

Arkansas edged Virginia Tech University by two-tenths of a point in the closest finish in SWSS history.

Competitors rotated to different stations where various weed science-related scenarios were set up. From herbicide symptomology and calibration, to weed identification and crop/weed situation recommendations, students were challenged, tested and scored.

In individual standings, Grant Lawson Priess finished first as the top overall scorer. He also won the herbicide symptomology category.

Mason Castner was second overall, Pamela Carvalho-Moore was sixth, Tristen Avent eighth and Maria Zaccaro 10th.

All team members are students in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Science's Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences, and all are Ph.D. candidates in crop, soil and environmental sciences.

 CSES professors Nilda Burgos and Jason Norsworthy are the coaches.

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. For more information about Bumpers College, visit our website, and follow us on Twitter at @BumpersCollege and Instagram at BumpersCollege.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the top 3% of U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research News.