CURTIS – The Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture Crops Team opened its judging season Saturday by winning second place among two-year colleges in a contest at Oklahoma Panhandle State University at Goodwell. 

The team is coached by NCTA Agronomy Professor Brad Ramsdale. 

Members of the team, all sophomores, are Ethan Aschenbrenner of Scottsbluff, Chase Callahan of Farnam, Tyler Aschenbrenner of Scottsbluff and Amy Lammers of Axtell. 

In individual competition, Ethan Aschenbrenner was second place and Chase Callahan was fourth. 

Academic courses and laboratory classes at NCTA prepare students for careers in crops production or to work in the industry as certified crops consultants. 

Crops contests are four-part aspects with plant, seed and weed identification in the lab; figuring agricultural calibrations and methods for planting crops plus, proper weed and pest control measures; a written test which incorporates all phases of agronomic knowledge, plus more aspects of crop production. 

NCTA students have access to learning tools in the Nebraska Agriculture Industry Education Center, in nearby test plots outside the building, and the campus farm. 

For the OPSU contest, the Aggies also had four freshmen students that participated in all aspects of the four-part contest but not for official rankings, said Ramsdale. 

The first contest is always a great learning experience for the first-year students. The four are Connor Nolan of Lynch, Jacob Jenkins of Mitchell, Taylor Sayer of Cambridge and Lilly Calkins of Palmyra. 

Five junior college or two-year programs competed, and six four-year colleges. 

The next contest will be hosted by the NCTA Agronomy Division in Curtis on Saturday, March 7. The 2019 event drew 13 teams from Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.