Soil Judging

2019 was Pitt-Johnstown’s debut year in Soil Judging. From October 8th through 12th the team traveled to Easton Maryland for the Northeast Regional Collegiate competition. This competition was hosted by the University of Maryland at Chesapeake Farms near Chestertown, MD. Our team places greatly for our first year in 11th place. 

Team Members: 

Alex Colosimo Senior and Environmental Studies “Soil judging is a fun and educational experience that is a perfect opportunity for students to learn how to work as a team while getting hands-on experience with soil.” 

Dillian Jeffery Junior and Environmental Studies major “Soil Judging was a great experience of which I was extremely happy to be a part of. I went not knowing what to expect. For the first two days of practice, I was feeling very overwhelmed with information that was being thrown at me. By the day of the competition, I was feeling more confident. By the time we got our scores for the soil pits we had judged, I realized that I did a lot better than I presumed I would’ve. After the competition was over, I realized how much I had actually learned and how much of an advantage I had over the people in my soils in the environment class, who didn’t attend the soils competition. This was an incredible, and extremely fun learning experience. I am very excited to attend the next soil judging competition and am looking forward to learning more about soils." 

Hope Leer Junior and Environmental Studies major “Soil judging was a great time; we all had a blast learning outside of the classroom in a competition setting and I will be making another appearance at the next soil judging competition.”

Joyce Lynn Senior and Environmental Studies/Geography double major “The soil judging competition I attended this year taught me more than I could have ever learned in any classroom. 17 different soil pits over three days taught me more than just horizons, texture, and color; but also, teamwork and strategy when under the pressure of a time limit. I plan on attending the 2020 Soil Judging Competition to refine my skills and pick up on things I may have missed the first year and our school's first time attending!”

Olivia Toomey Junior and Environmental Studies/Geography double major “I really enjoyed the fact that it was completely different from anything I have ever done before, learning the basics of soil profiling was a fantastic experience that I will never forget.” 

Emorson Wentz Junior and Environmental Studies major “Soil judging is not just a short weekend competition. It is a 4-day immersive learning experience that is packed full of hands-on experience!” 

Richard Wagner Senior and Environmental Studies/Geography double majo

The 2020 season was a tough one for all members. While most regional competitions were canceled our team still practiced and participated in the virtual national competition, in socially distanced rooms. 

Team Members:

Nick Scelsi Sophomore and Environmental Studies/Geography/Geology triple major.

Olivia Toomey Senior and Environmental Studies/Geography double major

Ian Abernathy Senior and Environmental Studies/Geography double major

Hope Leer Senior and Environmental Studies major

Emerson Wentz Senior and Environmental Studies major

Dillan Jeffery Senior and Environmental Studies major

From October 13th through 15th the team traveled to Allentown, Pennsylvania for the 2021 Northeast Regional Collegiate competition. This competition was hosted by Delaware Valley University at the Rodale Institute for Sustainable Agriculture. Our team placed 11th overall! 

Team Members:

Nick Scelsi Junior and Environmental Studies/Geography/Geology triple major.

Emorson Wentz Senior and Environmental Studies major

Sam Felix Junior and Environmental Studies/Biology double major

Brooke Leithner Senior and Environmental Studies major

Matt Siszka Senior and Environmental Studies/Geography major

The 2022 Northeast Regional Collegiate competition was hosted by Bloomsburg University. It was hosted from October 12-14 at the Boy Scouts Camp: Lavinge near Benton, PA. Our team did great and placed 8th overall!

Team Members:

Nick Scelsi Senior and Environmental Studies/Geography/Geology triple major

Sam Felix Senior and Environmental Studies/Biology double major Placed 18th Overall

Tyler Smith Senior and Environmental Studies/Energy and Earth Resources double major

Micah Gutierrez

The 2023 Northeast Regional Collegiate competition took place between September 26-29. This competition was hosted by Penn State University in Clearfield, PA, and Moshannon State Park. One of our competition teams placed 7th overall, the highest since 2019 for UPJ! 

Team Members:

Nick Scelsi Senior and Environmental Studies/Geography/Geology triple major

Nicholas Goldyn Senior and Environmental Studies major

Kaichen Fu Sophomore and Environmental Studies major

Elizabeth Mingin Sophomore and Environmental Studies/Geography double major

Lauren Eckman Sophomore and Environmental Studies/Geography double major

Caitlyn Alexander Sophomore and Environmental Studies/Geography double major

Anika Kapoor Sophomore and Environmental Studies major

Addison Cope Freshman and Civil Engineering major

Adelynn York Sophomore and Environmental Studies/Geography double major

The 2024 Northeast Regional Collegiate competition was hosted by the University of Rhode Island. Teams gathered in Kingston, RI from October 16th through 18th. Our team did fantastic and placed 7th, which makes us the first runner-up!

Team Members:

Caitlyn Alexander Junior and Environmental Studies/Geography major

Lauren Eckman Junior and Environmental Studies/Geography major

Bryant Green Junior and Environmental Studies major

David Humensky Senior and Engineering major

Frederick Kudrick Senior and Natural Sciences major

Rachel McTavish Junior and Environmental Studies major

Elizabeth Mingin Junior and Environmental Studies/Geography major

Julia Ruzewski Junior and Environmental Studies/Geography major

Chad Weist Junior and Environmental Studies/Geology major

Adelynn York Junior and Environmental Studies/Geography major

Team Members: 

to be announced

UPJ is honored to host the 2025 Regional Competition!

Dr. Mitzy Schaney Assistant Professor and Director of Environmental Studies Dr. Schaney is the team coach and instructor. She has done soil consulting for over a decade and is qualified as a professional soil scientist. She is a proud leader of this team and always pushes them to do well and have fun.

Assistant Coaches

Dr. Chris Coughenour Associate Professor of Geology Dr. Coughenour lent a great helping hand to our 2023-24 Team in the field! They were very thankful for all his help.

Richard Wagner A past student, he returned as an Assistant Coach to the 2020-2021 team. He also competed in that competition as a grad student.

Olivia Toomey A past student, she returned as an Assistant Coach to the 2021-2022 team. She also competed as a grad student and placed in the top 20.

Contact Dr. Mitzy Schaney at MIS212@pitt.edu!