Tea Area welding students earn seven top-10 finishes at Mitchell Tech competition

The Tea Area High School welding program turned in an impressive performance at the Mitchell Technical College Welding Competition, earning seven of the top 10 overall finishes among nearly 100 students competing from across South Dakota.

Leading the way for the Titans was Landry Coy, who claimed first place overall. Other Tea Area students finishing in the top 10 included Tucker Wingert in third place, Nick Jones in fourth, Cameron Halvin in fifth, Riker Cerny in seventh and Ensel McGraw in eighth.

In addition to the top finishes, Tea Area students earned more than $6,000 in welding equipment and cash prizes awarded to the competition’s top performers.

Students were tested in three areas of welding and technical knowledge. Competitors completed a T-joint weld that was evaluated through visual inspection, a V-groove butt weld that was tested for tensile strength, and a written welding knowledge test.

The remaining Tea Area competitors also represented the school well, contributing to an outstanding day for the Titan welding program.

The results reflect the students’ hard work, dedication and skills developed through their hands-on training in the welding program.