A team of Marion-Florence FFA students placed first overall in South Central District agriculture technology management contests April 4 in Hutchinson.

Aaron Molleker, Nick Meyer Clark Kroupa, and Jacob Cope comprised the Marion foursome that captured the team title. Molleker was the individual champion of the event, with Meyer finishing fourth and Kroupa fifth.

A second Marion team of Alicia Maloney, Clint Kroupa, and Tyler Wildin finished in fourth place on the strength of Maloney’s fifth-place ranking in individual competition.

Contestants completed written and performance tests related to grain handling and welding. Individual activities included identifying parts on a grain cart and completing a MIG welding exercise. Team activities included troubleshooting and adjusting a small gas engine, reading and interpreting an owner’s manual, and troubleshooting a problem on a grain cart.

The contest was sponsored jointly by the Hutchinson Community College agriculture power division and the welding department.

Seth Snelling, Raleigh Kroupa, Trevor Kruse, Bret Voth, Dylan Carpenter, Kyle Palic, Derrick Ratzloff, Brad Stone, and Adam Janzen participated in the livestock evaluation career development event. Marion placed 12th and 13th in the greenhand division of the contest.

Marion placed seventh in the invitational entomology career development event. Students had to identify 50 insect samples and take a written test to compete in this event.