GUSTAVUS, Ohio (WKBN) – Last month, Trumbull County’s Avery Rice took home “Reserve Grand Champion Market Lamb” at the Ohio State Fair. Her most recent feat was setting a record at the “Sale of Champions.”
Rice is about to embark on her freshman year at Badger High School, but the 14-year-old Gustavus girl is already a trailblazer. She is the first youth from Trumbull County to make it to the Sale of Champions for her Reserve Grand Champion Market Lamb.
“It means a lot for me to be able to do something that big for my county,” she said.
Rice broke the record set in 2022 during the process.
“[The Sale of Champions] was better than anything I could have ever dreamed of. I was really excited to be there,” she said.
Rice is no stranger to 4-H, but it’s only her second year showing lambs and her first time doing so at the Ohio State Fair. She placed second with her 130-pound lamb named Seven out of more than 600 entries.
“It was pretty crazy because I only took one lamb to the fair, so we only had one shot,” she said.
Rice says it took a lot of hard work, but it was worth it.
“We were in the barn every night washing legs, working lambs, treadmilling lambs, stuff like that,” she said.
Rice plans to continue showing lambs and offers advice to other youth aspiring to show animals at the state fair.
“All you have to do is work hard and you can do anything you put your mind to,” she said.
