A Dance to Remember Rachel Wyatt left her small town to follow big dreams, and it paid off with her becoming Miss America’s Outstanding Teen 2013 ifty-three extraordinary young women converged in Orlando, Florida at the Orange County Convention Center to fulfill their dreams of capturing the Miss America’s Outstanding Teen 2013 crown. The MAOTeen program, in only its 8th year, has triumphantly grown to into one of the largest scholarship programs for young women, making available more than $4 mil- lion in college scholarships nationally. Following a stunning rendition of the National Anthem by Miss America 2012 Laura Kaeppeler, the pageant commenced as co-host Greg Hutson readied the audience for the opening dance number featuring the delegates, whose towering silhouettes blan- keted the Linda Chapin Theatre stage screen. The screen dropped, laser lights pen- etrated the crowd, and the pulse-pounding dance mix kicked off the competition with a bang. The pageant had shifted into high gear and never looked back. Immediately following the opening dance number, before the contestants were even able to catch their breaths, the first four semi-finalists were announced—New Mexi- co’s Natalie Benson, Connecticut’s Jaine’ LeFebvre, Mississippi’s Molly May, and Georgia’s Jameson Kenerly. The competitors were swiftly whisked from the stage, main- taining the break-neck pace of the pageant followed by a montage of the contestants in- troductions taped earlier in the week at the Rosen Centre resort. Next, eight more competitors were brought to the stage, with four seeing them- selves eliminated as the remaining four ad- vanced one round closer to the coveted sash and crown. Virginia’s Andolyn Medina, F 44 PAGEANTRY PHOTO: JENN CADY DESIGN PHOTOGRAPHY