Hot Springs Woman Takes Miss South Dakota Crown

A small town in the southern Black Hills hosted the Miss South Dakota Pageant this past weekend. It turns out the crown will reside there as well.

Autumn Simunek of Hot Springs was crowned Miss South Dakota 2015. Her platform is “5 Stars For Serving Those Who Served.”

Simunek qualified for the pageant by winning the Miss Oahe title. For her talent, she performed the classic pop vocal “Hallelujah.”

As a sided note, Simunek is the second former Miss South Dakota’s Outstanding Teen in a row to go on to win the title of Miss South Dakota. She is the daughter of Kelly and Diane Simunek and is a student at the University of South Dakota.

First runner-up was Miss Siouxland Julia Olson, a South Dakota State University student who is from Spirit Lake, Iowa. Second runner-up was Miss South Dakota State University Brittanie Venard of Tea. Venard.

Worth noting would be two young ladies from Sioux Falls among the top eight finalists. Miss Sioux Falls Rayna Pearson and Miss Gold Rush Maria Anderson both from Sioux Falls made it through the preliminary portions of the competition.

Simunek will represent South Dakota at the Miss America pageant in Atlantic City in September. The pageant will be televised on ABC on September 13.