By Nicole Rap and Julie Murray

She didn’t place in the competition, but she made a new friend who placed second runner-up.

“I was watching Miss America and I thought it was something I’d never do,” Hensley said. “I wanted to give it a chance and try something new”.

The most important part of the competition started the night of March 12 with on-the-spot questions.

“It’s not all about how you look,” she said.

The full competition took place on March 13, when they cut people.

“I wanted to do this because I wanted to meet more people,” Hensley said. “And to accomplish something without my parents holding my hand.”

This is the second time Hensley participated in a competition. Her first was the summer before her freshman year.

She went to an informational meeting, then a preliminary meeting, which 150 girls attended and 40 girls made it to compete.