Miss USA 2009


Miss USA 2009, the 58th Miss USA pageant was held at the Theatre for the Performing Arts in Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 19, 2009. At the conclusion of the final night of competition, Kristen Dalton of North Carolina was crowned by outgoing titleholder Crystle Stewart of Texas.
The event was hosted by Billy Bush of Access Hollywood and actress Nadine Velazquez; Bush returned to host the pageant which he last emceed in 2005. He had previously co-hosted Miss USA 2003 with Daisy Fuentes and Miss USA 2004–2005 with Nancy O'Dell. Entertainment was provided by Kevin Rudolf who performed "Let It Rock" during the swimsuit competition and The Veronicas performed "Untouched" during the evening gown competition.
The competition was broadcast in High Definition for only the second time in history.
Delegates representing the fifty states plus the District of Columbia competed in the pageant, and arrived in Las Vegas on April 2. Miss USA Kristen Dalton represented the USA at the Miss Universe 2009 pageant, where she reached the Top 10.
Pageants were held from June 2008 to January 2009 to select the representative for each state. During the final show on April 19, the fifteen delegates with the highest average scores from the preliminary competition were announced. The top fifteen competed in the swimsuit competition. The top ten delegates from swimsuit competed in evening gown. The top five delegates from the evening gown competition competed in the final question round to determine the winner. The judges' composite score was shown after each round of competition for only the third time since 2002.

Results

Placements

Final ResultsContestant
Miss USA 2009
  • North Carolina – Kristen Dalton
1st Runner-Up
  • California – Carrie Prejean
    • 2nd Runner-Up
  • Arizona – Alicia-Monique Blanco
    • 3rd Runner-Up
  • Utah – Laura Chukanov
    • 4th Runner-Up
  • Kentucky – Maria Elizabeth Montgomery
    • Top 10
  • Arkansas – Chanley Painter
  • South Carolina – Stephanie Murray Smith
  • Tennessee – Kristen Motil
  • Texas – Brooke Daniels
  • West Virginia – Jessi Pierson
    • Top 15
  • Connecticut – Monica Mary Pietrzak
  • Georgia – Kimberly Gittings
  • Idaho – Melissa Weber
  • Minnesota – Erica Nego
  • Virginia – Maegan Phillips

    • Special awards

    Final scores

    StateSwimsuitEvening Gown
    North Carolina9.198 9.470
    California9.033 9.275
    Arizona9.092 9.189
    Utah8.851 8.849
    Kentucky8.963 9.047
    Texas8.548 8.694
    Tennessee8.442 8.578
    Arkansas8.704 8.419
    South Carolina8.402 8.335
    West Virginia8.475 8.296
    Virginia8.199
    Minnesota8.150
    Georgia7.946
    Idaho7.800
    Connecticut7.797

    Delegates

    The Miss USA 2009 delegates were:
    StateContestantHometownAgeHeightPlacementAwardNotes
    AlabamaRachel PhilipponaDothan20
    AlaskaJessica Irene NolinPalmer22
    ArizonaAlicia-Monique BlancoPhoenix225'8"2nd runner-up
    ArkansasChanley PainterConway245'9"Top 10
    CaliforniaCarrie PrejeanLa Jolla215'10"1st runner-ipLater dethroned due to same-sex marriage controversy after the conclusion of the pageant
    ColoradoPatrice WilliamsColorado Springs225'7"
    ConnecticutMonica Mary PietrzakManchester255'11"Top 15
    DelawareKate BanaszakMiddletown24
    District of ColumbiaNicole WhiteWashington, D.C.205'8"Previously Miss District of Columbia Teen USA 2004
    FloridaAnastagia PierreFort Lauderdale205'9"Previously Miss Florida Teen USA 2004
    Later Miss Bahamas Intercontinental 2010 and Miss Bahamas 2011
    GeorgiaKimberly GittingsLilburn20Top 15
    HawaiiAureana TseuMililani Town255'7"Previously Miss Hawaii Teen USA 1999
    IdahoMelissa WeberBoise27Top 15
    IllinoisAshley BondChicago24
    IndianaCourtni HallCrawfordsville205'9"Previously Miss Indiana Teen USA 2004
    IowaChelsea Lynn GaugerAnkeny20
    KansasCourtney CourterOlathe235'9"
    KentuckyMaria Elizabeth MontgomeryDanville195'10"4th runner-up
    LouisianaLacey MinchewBaton Rouge255'7"Previously Miss Teen America 2002, represented Georgia
    MaineAshley UnderwoodBenton245'8"Later contestant in '
    MarylandGabrielle CarlsonMarion Station24
    MassachusettsAlison CroninWeymouth21Previously Miss Massachusetts Teen USA 2005
    MichiganLindsey TycholizSterling Heights26
    MinnesotaErica NegoPlymouth24Top 15Later Miss Universe Ghana 2011
    MississippiJessica Lauren McRaneyTerry23Previously Miss Mississippi Teen USA 2004
    MissouriStacey SmithFlorissant235'9"
    MontanaMisti VogtKalispell235'11"
    NebraskaMeagan WiningsAtkinson23Previously Miss Nebraska Teen USA 2004
    NevadaGeorgina VaughanLas Vegas215'10"Previously Miss Nevada Teen USA 2006
    New HampshireChristy DunnLaconia26
    New JerseyKaity RodriguezClifton24
    New MexicoBianca Matamoros-KoonceAlbuquerque23
    New YorkTracey ChangNew York City265'7"
    North CarolinaKristen DaltonWilmington225'7"Miss USA 2009'Daughter of Jeannie Boger, Miss North Carolina USA 1982
    Sister of Julia Dalton, Miss North Carolina Teen USA 2008 and Miss North Carolina USA 2015
    North DakotaKelsey EricksonGrand Forks22
    OhioNatasha VivodaChampion21
    OklahomaLauren LundayAltus25
    OregonSylvie TarpinianEugene24
    PennsylvaniaLindsey NelsenDallastown215'7"
    Rhode IslandAlysha CastonguayWoonsocket225'6"Previously Miss Rhode Island Teen USA 2002
    Previously Miss Teen America 2003
    Previously Miss Teen Galaxy 2005
    South CarolinaStephanie Murray SmithGoose Creek215'7"Top 10Later contestant in The Amazing Race 17''
    South DakotaJessica RowellSioux Falls225'7"
    TennesseeKristen MotilFranklin245'9"Top 10
    TexasBrooke DanielsTomball225'9"Top 10
    UtahLaura ChukanovSalt Lake City225'9"3rd runner-up
    VermontBrooke WernerGranville22
    VirginiaMaegan PhillipsQuantico22Top 15
    WashingtonTara TurnureSeattle23Sister of Tracy Turnure, Miss Washington USA 2010
    West VirginiaJessi PiersonMilton215'7"Top 10Miss Photogenic
    WisconsinAlexandra WehrleyPewaukee215'8"Later worked as a television host
    WyomingCynthia PateCasper22Miss Congeniality

    Historical significance

    Preliminary judges

    During the 2009 Miss USA pageant, Miss California Carrie Prejean, was asked by openly gay pageant judge, Perez Hilton, whether she believed every state should legalize same-sex marriage. She responded that she did not. After the pageant Hilton made negative comments about the contestant and told ABC News: "She lost it because of that question. She was definitely the front-runner before that," leading some to believe that the answer directly had caused her to lose the competition. Prejean stated that Miss California USA officials had pressured her to apologize for her statement and "not talk" about her Christian faith.
    Several politicians and commentators assailed Hilton and defended Prejean for honestly stating her personal beliefs.
    Following the pageant, Prejean hired a Christian public relations firm, and appeared in a television advertisement by the National Organization for Marriage. However, on June 10, 2009, Prejean again stated that her question caused her to lose her title when she learned she was fired by Donald Trump. Miss California USA officials state that her answer had nothing to do with her termination, citing continued breach of her contract instead.

    New crown

    In keeping with co-owner NBC Universal's "Green is Universal" environmental initiative, the Miss Universe Organization announced that Diamond Nexus Labs would become the official jewelry sponsor for the Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA pageants. DNL 's
    man-made gemstones are "all synthesized in clean labs using environmentally friendly processes". Diamond Nexus Labs will create a custom-designed crown for Miss USA 2009, as well as for the Miss Universe and Miss Teen USA pageants later this year.