Staudinger Tops National Jersey Youth Production Contest

Eli Staudinger of Reedsville, Wis., has won the 2025 National Jersey Youth Production Contest with his homebred entry, Blue Royal Nu Karoline-ET.

He and the 19 other juniors who placed in the contest will be recognized at the All American Jersey Youth Awards Ceremony on November 6, 2026, in Louisville, Ky. Each will receive a plaque and cash awards made possible, in part, by Jersey breeders who consign animals to the National Heifer Sale. Each year, 10% of the proceeds from this sale are designated for youth program support, including the National Jersey Youth Production Contest.

Records are ranked by the total dollar value of their components. The values were determined by calculating the 305-day mature equivalent (m.e.), then applying Federal Order component values from the previous year, along with a weighted-average Producer Price Differential (PPD). Those values were $2.44 per pound fat, $2.45 per pound protein, $0.37 per pound other solids and $0.96 per pound PPD.

This contest recognizes the efforts of junior owners to compile and utilize official production records of their animals. Through this one activity, youth gain experience using records to manage and breed their Jersey cows and understand the value of production.

To qualify for the competition, cows must have completed a lacta­tion of no more than 305 days during the calen­dar year. The contest is divided into two divi­sions. Division I is for first-lactation cows that calve before they reach 30 months of age. Divi­sion II is for all other cows. Participants are eligible for an award in only one division, and an overall contest winner is recognized.

A junior is eligible to win the overall National Jersey Youth Production Contest just once.

Total cash awards are $550. Each division winner receives $100. The second-place honoree receives $75; third takes home $50; and fourth receives $25. The overall winner gets an additional $50, bringing their award total to $150.

This year, 102 qualified entries from 53 juniors from eight states were received. The top 20 animals ranked in this year’s contest have an m.e. average of 26,345—1,416—986 and a dollar value of $6,674.66. All entries have an m.e. average of 22,507—1,144—836 and a dollar value average of $5,527.79.

Click here to see complete rankings in the 2025 National Jersey Youth Production Contest.

Division I

The previously mentioned “Karoline” was the winner of the division for younger cows and the overall winner.

The high-component daughter of St-Lo Nuance-ET, GJPI +34, produced a record with a dollar value of $7,578.46 as a milking yearling. The actual 305-day record is 23,700 lbs. milk, 1,425 lbs. fat and 916 lbs. protein, with tests of 6.5% fat and 3.9% protein. The m.e. is 27,148—1,674—1,087. She is appraised Desirable-75%.

“Karoline” jump-started her milking career freshening with her first calf on New Year’s Day 2025. She gave 76 lbs. milk for the tester 20 days fresh and then peaked with 103 lbs. milk in February and then 98 and 92 lbs. milk in March and April, respectively.

She freshened again in early March 2026 and has repeated her stellar performance in her second lactation, with more than 100 lbs. milk in March, June and July. She is projected to 29,418 lbs. milk, 1,769 lbs. fat and 1,098 lbs. protein actual at 3-0 and is due to Avonlea Poker Chip-ET in February.

“Karoline” is from a recognized cow family. Her dam, Rexlea Joel Karoline-ET, Excellent-93%, is a full sister to Rexlea Joel Karausel-ET, Reserve Senior Champion of the 2021 International Jersey Show. The next dam, Scottiere Kyra Blackstone, is a former top 10 cow for Genomic Lifetime Production Index in Canada and recipient of a lifetime production award from Jersey Canada.

This marks Eli’s first appearance in the Jersey youth production contest. He and his family milk a mixed-breed herd of 2,500 cows at Blue Royal Dairy LLC in Reedsville. Eli was active in 4-H and FFA and has shown several breeds at local, state and national shows, including the All American Junior Jersey Show and World Dairy Expo. He has also purchased Jerseys from the Pot O’Gold Sale, including a selection from the event in 2022 in partnership with his brother, Ethan. Eli is a sophomore at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, where he is majoring in dairy science.

Another newcomer to the top rankings of the contest, Erica Neal Stock of Newton, Wis., placed second in Division I with JX Dodan Jill Patronus Juleka {6}. The dollar value of her first lactation is $7,416.59. She made an actual record of 2-0 305 25,090 4.7% 1,190 3.8% 948 97DCR. The m.e. stands at 30,779—1,465—1,184.

“Juleka {6}” is a Very Good-84% daughter of Ahlem Miami Patronus-ET, GJPI +97. She calved for the first time in mid-January 2025. She peaked with 92 lbs. milk in April, gave 90 lbs. milk four months later, and was still giving 67 lbs. of component-rich milk (5.5% fat, 4.3% protein) for her May test at 491 days in milk. She was due to ABS AVJ 39444 Micco {6}-ET, GJPI +190, in August. “Juleka {6} comes by her functional type and production naturally, as eight of her nine closest dams are all appraised Very Good and have m.e. averages over 20,000 lbs. milk.

Erica helps to operate D & D Jerseys with her sister, Emalee, and their parents, Donna Phillips and Dan Stock.

Hailey Fischer of Cecil, Wis., placed third in the division for younger cows with Kash-In Heritage 69287-ET, a purchase from the 2023 Pot O’Gold Sale. “Heritage 69287” made an actual record of 1-9 287 20,670 5.0% 1,037 3.9% 798 96DCR. The dollar value of the record is $7,080.64 and the m.e. is 28,669—1,422—1,116.

Appraised Very Good-84%, she is sired by River Valley Heritage {6}-ET, GJPI +75. She freshened with a heifer calf—Kash-In Carnival Hatti—in mid-April 2024. She settled on her first service, calved with another heifer—JX Haileys Garland Hailyn {6}— and made a second lactation of 23,260 lbs. milk, 1,149 lbs. fat and 886 lbs. protein at 2-8.

Hailey has also won the 2025 Pot O’Gold Production Contest with “Heritage 69287 {6}” and will receive a cash prize of $2,249.73. She purchased “Heritage 69287 {6}” from Kash-In Jerseys, Tulare, Calif., for $2,800. “Heritage 69287 {6}” is backed by the cow family that traces to BW Avery Katie ET121-ET, Excellent-93%, with four consecutive lactations over 30,000 lbs. milk and multiple sons in A.I., including BW Award and BW Academy-ET.

“Heritage 69287 {6}” is managed with the herd at Milk-n-More Farms and Harvesting LLC, operated by Hailey’s aunt and uncle, Ron and Nicolle Wussow, and their family in Cecil, Wis.

Another Pot O’Gold purchase—MM Nicklaus Liberty 22243-ET—earned fourth place in Division I of the youth production contest. She is owned by Sara Jane Bok of Defiance, Ohio.

“Liberty 22243” produced a record with a dollar value of $6,847.86 and an m.e. of 29,305—1,408—1,027. Actual production for the 1-8 record is 22,080 lbs. milk, 1,069 lbs. fat and 768 lbs. protein.

Sired by Victory Thrasher Nicklaus-ET, GJPI +109, and appraised 82 points, she freshened in mid-October 2024. She gave 89 lbs. milk on both her January and March tests, settled on her second service, and calved in early November 2025 to start her second lactation. She is projected to 19,161 lbs. milk, 1,076 lbs. fat and 793 lbs. protein actual at 2-9.

Sara placed second in this year’s Pot O’Gold Production Contest with “Liberty 22243” and will receive a cash prize of $1,437.33. She purchased the heifer from Misty Meadow Dairy, Tillamook, Ore., for $3,000.

Sara has done well with other Pot O’Gold purchases as well, ranking among the top five in both the National Jersey Youth Production Contest and the Pot O’Gold Production Contest each of the past four years. She won Division I of the 2022 youth production contest with Four J Chrome 19117 {5} and earned top marks last year with MM Popcorn Shelby 17874-P-ET.

A fellow Ohio junior, Lauren Albright of Willard, placed fifth in Division I of the youth production contest with JX AJ Corsair 5494 {5}-Twin. The Very Good-88% daughter of JX Primus Rowan Corsair {5}-ET, GJPI +72, made an actual record of 1-9 305 3x 21,990 5.4% 1,185 3.4% 740 84DCR. The dollar value of the record is $6,656.05 and the m.e. is 26,808—1,468—920.

She started the record with the delivery of a bull calf in mid-October 2024. A consistent producer, “Corsair 5494 {5}” gave 76 lbs. milk on her first test and was still making 67 lbs. on her last test at 325 days fresh. She calved again in early October 2025, this time with a heifer by Progenesis Michigan-ET, GJPI +135, and is projected to 22,288 lbs. milk, 1,139 lbs. fat and 806 lbs. protein actual at 2-11.

“Corsair 5494 {5}” is a fifth-generation Very Good cow and is backed by four dams with actual records over 22,000 lbs. milk. She is in the milking herd at Albright Jerseys, operated by Lauren and her family.

Division II

The winner of Division II of the youth production contest is Ava Hebgen of Arlington, Wis. Her entry, Stadview Colton Vintage, Excellent-92%, made a record with a dollar value of $7,430.62 and an m.e. of 24,731—1,748—983. Actual production for the 3-6 record is 25,390 lbs. milk, 1,750 lbs. fat and 992 lbs. protein, with tests of 6.9% fat and 3.9% protein.

Sired by Chilli Action Colton-ET, GJPI -60, “Vintage” is a seventh-generation Excellent owned by Ava and her sisters, Ivy and Liv, through Ela May Genetics, a partnership established in memory of their late sister, Ela. The sisters purchased “Vintage” in the Franchise Kind Enhanced by Bos Dairy sale in 2022 as a fresh two-year-old from Stadview, Franchise, Kueffner and Hetts of Litchfield, Minn.

“Vintage” began her winning 3-6 record in early April 2024 with the birth of a heifer calf, Ela May Sting Vintage Couture. She gave more than 100 lbs. milk for the tester in August and surpassed that milestone for the next three months as well. The component queen had tests as high as 8.4% for fat and 5.0% for protein.

“Vintage” settled on her first service and gave birth to a bull calf to start her third lactation in June 2025. She has 19,950 lbs. milk, 1,227 lbs. fat and 725 lbs. protein in 259 days at 4-6 and is due in early August to Avonlea Chips Canadian Club-ET, GJPI -82

Ava has also placed well in both youth production contests over the years. Each of the past four years, she has placed in the Pot O’Gold Production Contest with purchases she has made on her own or in partnership with her sisters. Their cattle are managed with the herd at Kessenich Farms LLC in De Forest, Wis., operated by their grandparents, Jeff and Robin Krueger Kessenich, and aunt and uncle, Natalie Kessenich and Wade Kessenich.

Wisconsin juniors captured the next four placings as well. Charlie Tauchen of Bonduel ranked second in Division II with his homebred entry, Tauchen Kiawa Enovy-P. As a junior four-year-old, she made a record with a dollar value of $6,994.81 and an m.e. of 28,188—1,436—1,073. Actual production is 27,220 lbs. milk, 1,387 lbs. fat and 1,035 lbs. protein.

“Enovy-P” is an Excellent-90% daughter of JX Ahlem Baltazar Kiawa {6}P-ET, GJPI +67. She calved in June 2025 to start the winning record and gave 118 lbs. of milk right off the bat for her first test in July. She had more than 100 lbs. milk for the next two tests, followed by 90-plus pounds for the next three months. “Enovy-P” is due to S-S-I Victory Clever Fielding, GJPI +175, in September.

She has one daughter, Tauchen Galantis Evie, and is a superstar in the herd at Tauchen Harmony Valley Inc., with another pair of previous actual records over 22,000 lbs. milk, 1,200 lbs. fat and 840 lbs. protein, too. Last year, Charlie placed fourth in the division for older cows with another homebred entry.

Addison Fischer of Cecil, Wis., a sister to Hailey, placed third in Division II again this year with Kailas Ferdinand Vesper. The Very Good-82% daughter of Isau Lightning Ridge Ferdinand, GJPI -52, made an actual record of 2-9 285 19,180 5.9% 1,133 4.1% 782 98DCR to place in the contest. The dollar value of the record is $6,719.32 and the m.e. is 25,262—1,439—994.

“Vesper” freshened with her second calf—a heifer registered as Milk-n-More Girls Bigred Vesley—to begin the lactation in late July 2024. She gave 89 lbs. milk on her second test and then peaked with 91 lbs. milk on her next test. She was a consistently high-protein tester, with measures as high as 4.4% and no lower than 3.7% across her lactation. She settled on her second service and gave birth to her third daughter—Milk-n-More Mist Vany—in September 2025. “Vesper” left the herd in February.

“Vesper” was bred by Addison’s cousin, Kaila Wussow Taichen, a former winner of the National Jersey Youth Achievement Contest and both the National Jersey Youth Production Contest and the Pot O’Gold Production Contest.

Ivy Hebgen of De Forest placed fourth in Division II with Vierra Shotgun Rider-ET. She produced a record with a dollar value of $6,681.59 and an m.e. of 24,306—1,590—840. The actual record is 3-1 305 3x 23,840 6.5% 1,543 3.4% 822 93DCR.

“Rider” is an Excellent-93% daughter of Mr Kathies Kid Rock, GJPI -244. She began her 3-1 lactation when she freshened with a heifer calf—Ela May Colton Shaboozey—in July 2024. She peaked with 97 lbs. milk in both October and November and completed her lactation in late May.

She calved again with another heifer named Ela May Texas Lonestar in September 2025 and completed a 4-3 record of 21,210 lbs. milk, 1,536 lbs. fat and 789 lbs. protein. She is due again this September to SV Reviresco Hidalgo, GJPI -130.

Ivy purchased “Rider” with Ava and Liv in June 2022 as an open yearling from her breeder, Vierra Dairy Farms of Hilmar, Calif. She is a daughter of Bri-Lin Valson Spritz, Excellent-97%, two-time Grand Champion of the International Jersey Show.

Rounding out the top five rankings in the division for older cows is Blue Royal Colton Margarita-ET, owned by Ethan Staudinger. The Very Good-85% “Colton” daughter made a 2-9 record with a dollar value of $6,466.13 and an m.e. of 24,751—1,438—898. Actual production is 23,600 lbs. milk, 1,347 lbs. fat and 849 lbs. protein.

“Margarita” freshened in June 2024 with her second calf and gave 113 lbs. on her first test in July. She consistently hovered around 75 lbs. for the rest of her lactation and was dried off in May. She calved again in September 2025 and completed a 3-11 record of 24,000 lbs. milk, 1,410 lbs. fat and 982 lbs. protein, with tests of 5.9% fat and 4.1% protein. She was bred to an Angus bull and is due in September. “Margarita” has three daughters: Blue Royal Victory Margarita, Blue Royal Chief Marmalade and Blue Royal Vic Valley.

Other Winners

Other juniors to be honored for accomplishments in Division I of the contest are Zachary S. Chittenden, Schodack Landing, N.Y.; Renee Lydia Bok, Defiance, Ohio; Kenley and Paisley Kessenich, De Forest, Wis.; Cassie Bohnert, East Moline, Ill.; and Kamryn Kasbergen, Tulare, Calif.

Juniors to be recognized for achievements in Division II are Mason Ziemba, Scipio Center, N.Y.; Nicholas J. McReynolds, Danville, N.Y.; Emalee Neal Stock, Newton, Wis.; Jacob Bohnert, East Moline, Ill.; and Tyler Ahlem, Hilmar, Calif.