By KATRINA SEYMOUR
For The Herald

Nervous mothers dressed their little darlings and fathers shined cars. Locks were curled and pinned in place. Shining faces peered out at crowds gathered for yesterday's afternoon parade, gloved hands waved expertly at friends and family.

All were a preface to the 93rd Pumpkin Show Little Miss contest.

This year, 156 young ladies competed for the crown, which requires its winner to represent the festival at celebrations across Ohio.

Judges chose two girls from groups of 10 as finalists. The field was then narrowed again. Each girl was questioned by the judges, and finally, more than two hours after the first contestant stepped on stage, a decision was made.

Little Miss Rebecca Maddox, daughter of Helen and Mark Maddox of Circleville, stepped forward to be crowned.

"We're really proud of her, as we are of all our children," her mother said. Afterward, she embraced her daughter and asked, "Can you believe it?" The proud winner simply nodded, "Yes."

This year's little miss was more inclined to talk about the front tooth she lost recently than the contest. She did smile and say she was excited and happy, with her toothy grin.

Maddox was sponsored by Frost and Maddox Co. LPA and and attends Mound Street Elementary.

She will be accompanied by First Attendant Emily Selin, daughter of Jeff and Ginger Selin of Williamsport and and Second Attendant Taylor Kerschner, daughter of Sonny and Angie Kerschner of Orient. Selin attends Jackson Elementary and was sponsored by her school and Kerschner attends Scioto Elementary and was sponsored by Mike Vallery Auto Group.

Selin's mother summed her feelings with one word: "happy." She said her daughter likes to dress up occasionally, but she's also a tomboy. She thanked the people at Jackson Elementary for their support and her friends and family who helped cheer on her daughter through the competition.

Selin said she was "a little embarrassed" by all the noise from her supporters in the crowd. She couldn't wait to get some cotton candy after the competition, she said.

Kerschner is the sole little miss contestant from her family. "Oh my gosh, (I'm) very excited," her mother said after the win. Kerschner's pink sweater and dress shorts were her own choice. Her mother said when they went to choose an outfit, "she tried that one on and I couldn't get her out of it. She loved it."

Kerschner said her favorite food at the Pumpkin Show is traditional pumpkin pie and she was ready to hit the rides after winning.

The girls' first act as the reigning court will be to ride the Pumpkin Show royalty float in parades for the remainder of the festival.

The girls not chosen to wear the crown this year seemed happy to rejoin their parents and head for the rides.

Brooke Arledge of Nicholas Drive Elementary and Kelsie Sharp of Amanda Elementary wanted to ride the ferris wheel. Others wanted to ride the merry-go-round and dragon boat.

Those who weren't riding were eating. Most of this group of little miss contestants liked pumpkin, including Allison Sark of Washington Elementary. She also was one of the few contestants who chose to wear pants, donning a tough "black leather" look. She said she picked her outfit because her father likes motorcycles.

Megan Thompson, also of Washington Elementary, also chose pants over the traditional pageant dress. She chose her outfit for a more practical reason, however. She said she thought it would be cold for the parade and wanted to stay warm.

Brittney Stonerock, Mound Street Elementary, wanted to make sand art after leaving the stage and bravely said she was not disappointed in the contest outcome. She was too busy rooting for her friends.

For the first time in many years, 50-cent pieces were distributed to the girls as they came onstage. This was a tradition in the past that has been inactive for many years. Urgent Care of Circleville donated the coins.

Judges for the contest were Angela Summers, WHOK K95.5 FM radio of Columbus/Lancaster; Kelly McNeal, WKKJ and WBEX radio of Chillicothe and Paula Halasz, from The Ross-Pike County Paper of Chillicothe.

"I think it's a lot of fun. I think it's really hard to judge, but I think it's good for the girls. They seem to think it's a lot of fun," Summers said.

With the beginning of this court's reign, another came to a close. Little Miss Pumpkin Show 1998 Paige Radcliff and her court, Brittany Scott and Mariah Davis bid their year in the festival spotlight goodbye. Radcliff said her favorite memories of her year in the spotlight would be the parades and seeing her family and friends in the audience.

Being a pageant winner taught her a few things. Radcliff said, "I want to thank my court and the lady that would drive us around and my mom and dad and aunts and uncles because a lot them were there for me."

Scott and Davis agreed, and Scott said, "My best part was getting to meet so many new people and riding on the float."

The Little Miss Pumpkin Show contest is sponsored by Circleville Jaycees. Contestants prizes were donated by Photo Express, As We Grow, Lindsey's Bake Shop, Wittich's Candy Shop, Journey Into Comics, Hot Music and Games, Block's Shoe Store, Fitzpatrick's Printing, Designs by Donna, Treasure Isle, Kristen Karson Cards and Gifts, Gio's Pizza and Pub and Renee's Custom Interior Design. The judge's car for the parade was supplied by Harden Chevrolet.