Miss Douglas County learns from pageant

by Sharlene Irete

sirete@recordcourier.com

Mackenzie Cauley didn't place in the Miss Nevada Pageant on Saturday, but said everything went great.

"It was an awesome experience," the recent Douglas High School graduate said. "It opened my eyes to the pageant world. There's a lot more to it."

Cauley, 18, competed as Miss Douglas County at the pageant. Her talent was singing "Home" from the Broadway musical "Beauty and the Beast."

"It was a fun, but I'm going to focus on my education for now," she said.

Cauley registered for classes at the University of Oregon in Eugene on Thursday. She said she is working toward a career in the medical field, either pre-med or nursing.

"I have no regrets. I did my best and learned a lot," she said. "I know if I did a pageant again, I could use what I learned for interviews in college and for jobs."

Christina Keegan was crowned Miss Nevada 2009 at the Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts in Reno on Saturday. The Gardnerville resident and 2004 graduate of Douglas High School competed as Miss Northern Counties.

First runner-up was Miss Truckee Meadows Cassandra Walker. Second runner-up was Miss Southern Counties Kellie Mills, and Miss Reno-Sparks Sarah Wilson was third runner-up.

Keegan will represent Nevada in the Miss America Pageant in Las Vegas in January.