By Morgan Harlan | Assistant News Editor
Baylor holds the crown as the oldest collegiate Homecoming in the nation, and the celebration would not be complete without its royalty, the Homecoming queen and her court.
Since 1934, Baylor has crowned one female student to be chosen as university royalty.
On Thursday night, Baylor’s 2019 Homecoming queen was announced as Spring senior Kaylin Blancas, a marketing major nominated by Student Foundation, for which she also serves as copresident.
“The court” consists of four Homecoming princesses. The 2019 Baylor Homecoming princesses are Houston senior Amelia Tidwell, nominated by Phi Alpha Theta; Scottsdale, Ariz., senior Lily Sanblom, nominated by Kappa Alpha Theta; Flower Mound senior Lauren Cox, nominated by Baylor B Association; and Wylie senior Hannah Eboagu, nominated by Kappa Omicron Nu.
Every official organization on campus is eligible to nominate a female member for Baylor’s Homecoming court. The members then submit a formal application and participate in a group interview.
The group interview for the queen and her court consists of four nominees and a panel of three judges from Baylor Chamber of Commerce.
The original Baylor Homecoming queen was selected based on the quality of the float she rode in instead of her personal attributes. In 1973, the parade and Homecoming court judging were separated.
Baylor describes interview criteria as “scholarship, philanthropy, spiritual commitment and poise,” and the website states that “each category may be awarded up to 10 points and an additional 10 points may be awarded by judges in a ‘bonus’ category for qualities not specifically named.” The candidate closest to a score of 50 is chosen as queen.
In addition to the interviews, each nominee must find a dress to wear to the Homecoming court ceremony on Thursday night’s Pigskin Revue and the Saturday morning Homecoming parade. Nominees also have to find convertibles to ride in during the parade.
The queen and her court will be presented at the Baylor Homecoming football game at 3 p.m. Saturday against Texas Tech.
Columbus, Ohio, senior Maddie Brooks was nominated by the Panhellenic Executive Board, for which she serves as president.
“I felt so comfortable in the interview and loved getting to hear each woman’s story and about some of their experiences here at Baylor,” Brooks said. “It was very encouraging; I was rooting for each girl and was blown away by their perspectives and talents.”
Brooks said she found her convertible from a sorority sister in Alpha Chi Omega who offered to drive her at the parade this Saturday, and also that she wanted to find a simple black gown that wasn’t too expensive and matched her personality.
Houston senior Ashley Martin was nominated on the court as the sweetheart of Pi Kappa Phi.
“This is such a big part of Baylor’s traditions and just being on this side of Homecoming and getting to see what all goes into this weekend has been so much fun,” Martin said.
The first thing Martin did when she found out she was nominated for Homecoming court was drive home and go dress shopping with her mom.
“I absolutely love dress shopping, so that was such a sweet moment to get to share with her,” Martin said.
Clubs and organizations other than Panhellenic groups are also represented, such as the Baylor Virtual Reality Club, who nominated Rockwall senior Ali Barnett.
Barnett said she was not only honored to be a representative of her organization, but also for Baylor as a nominee.
“It was such a whirlwind trying to get everything pulled together, but it honestly just all fell into place. I was able to borrow a family member’s car, and I found my dress from a boutique right here in Waco,” Barnett said. “I really love how everything came together.”
The Homecoming queen and her court will be participating in the Homecoming parade starting at 8 a.m. Saturday and the Homecoming football game at 3 p.m. against Texas Tech.
