ROME TOWNSHIP — Individual animal competitions wrapped up on Thursday night at the Lawrence County Fair, with the Beef Breeding, Feeder Calf and Beef Showmanship competition taking place in the main barn.

Taking grand champion in the Market Feeder Steer contest was Chad Morris, 18, a 2019 Symmes Valley High graduate and member of Starlite 4-H Club. The reserve champion was Karsyn Ball, also of Starlite.

It was a winning week for Morris, as he was also named reserve champion in the Market Steer competition on Wednesday.

“Winning sounds good,” he said.

This is Morris’s last year in 4-H, having aged out of eligibility. He will be attending Marshall University in the fall for civil engineering.

He reflected on his time involved with 4-H and the fair.

“It’s had it’s ups and down,” he said. “But it’s taught me respect and dedication.”

He said he will continue to raise animals, as his family has a farm, and hopes to stay engaged with 4-H.

“I hope to get involved and help any way I can,” Morris said.

Ball, also of Symmes Valley, said she has been involved with 4-H for six years. She has won reserve champion twice and has been junior division showman.

“I’m very excited,” she said of Thursday’s win. She also took the title of senior showman.

In the Market Feeder Heifer competition, the grand champion was Maddy Calaway, a 2019 Symmes Valley graduate and member of Getaway Go Getters 4-H Club.

She has one more year left in 4-H and has been a repeat winner, having been grand champion in Market Feeder Steer and Market Feeder Calf in 2016, reserve champion and Senior Showman in Beef Breeding in 2016, Grand Champion for Feeder Steer in 2017, reserve champion for Market Steer in 2017, and grand champion for Market Feeders in 2018.

She was also first runner-up for fair queen this year and was fair princess in 2017.

The reserve champion in Market Feeder Heifer was Marley Ferguson, 10, of Kitts Hill, who was grand champion in Market Steer on Wednesday and won junior showman on Thursday.

Her relatives with her described farming as a “family affair,” with everyone involved in raising many cattle.

“It feels very good,” Ferguson, a Symmes Valley Elementary student and member of Starlite 4-H, said her wins. “This is just my second year and I’ve done really well.”

In Beef Breeding, the grand champion was Morgan Klaiber, Gingham and Denim 4-H and Symmes Valley FFA. She graduated from the high school this year.

Like the others, she was having a momentous few days, having been named as this year’s fair queen on Sunday.

“It’s been going really great,” she said. “It’s been an exciting fair week.”

Klaiber, who has one more year at the fair, said she has been raising cattle her entire life and the whole family has done so as well.

The reserve champion in Beef Breeding was Enola Cade, of Symmes Valley High and Country Clan 4-H Club.

Cade, who was first runner-up for fair princess this year, also won the Beef Breeding Sweepstakes contest on Thursday.

The winner is based on the 4-Hers performance in the Skillathon and showmanship events.

“It’s just what you know about your animal,” she explained of the title. She also came in second in the junior showman competition.