The anticipation was high on Saturday as sixteen female undergraduates at West Chester University waited for the announcement on who will be crowned as the latest Miss West Chester University, writes Daily Local News.

The Miss WCU competition, which has given out over $18,000 in scholarship funds, was held in Emilie K. Asplundh Concert Hall in the Philips Memorial Building.

A wide variety of academic majors such as biology and microbiology and social work were represented in this year’s competition, with the platforms they were covering ranging from local human services organizations such as Safe Harbor to national organizations including Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America.

The event was presented by several former winners, including last year’s Miss WCU, Nia Andrews and Miss Philadelphia 2015, Julia Schluchter.

Among the notable performances of the evening were the University’s Dance Team, which was returning from the UCA/UDA College Cheerleading and Dance Team National Championships with two finalist trophies in hip-hop and jazz, and the West Chester University’s Gospel Choir.

Nia Andrews, the contestants, and the Gospel Choir performing “Bridge Over Troubled Water” were all featured in the impressive finale where Ashley Lyles, a junior Communication major, was crowned the winner.

The show was enhanced by expanded digital media and video effects led by the director and WCU alumnus Michael Hartman. Hartman, who is currently serving as an artistic director of the Greater Ocean City Theatre Company, started Miss WCU 18 years ago as a residence hall competition.

Michelle Filling-Brown, who is the English Department chair at Cabrini College, Rachel Brooks-Atkins, who was Miss Pennsylvania 2007, and April Halligan-Rostek, who is assistant principal at Reading School District l, are just a few examples that show that winning this competition is a springboard to success, as the majority of former winners later move on to participation in other competitions and successful careers.