Brandon Lesko
Assoc. Opinion Editor

Mr. SOLA, Ricardo Bens Matos and his escort salsa danced passionately for the talent portion of Mr. Millersville.
Mr. SOLA, Ricardo Bens Matos and his escort salsa danced passionately for the talent portion of Mr. Millersville.

Eight of Millersville’s most exceptional men took to the stage Tuesday night, April 9, to compete for the title of Mr. Millersville. The event, which was held in the SMC MPR, was sponsored by Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) and pitted the eight contestants against each other in categories of beachwear, talent, and a question and answer session.
The contestants, who each represented a different Millersville organization, included: Ricardo Bens Matos of SOLA, Paul Clemmer of HCSA, John Coleman of MUTV, Josh Hess representing Geology Club, Zach Staab from The Snapper, Cody Wade of WIXQ, Jovon Watts from Omega Psi Phi, and Connor Wolf from Ultimate Frisbee.
After being introduced to the audience by the event hosts, Bret Badger and Dillon Kelly, the participants all took part in the first competition of the evening: the beachwear competition. Each contestant modeled their best bathing suits, though some went for a more original approach. Mr. WIXQ, Cody Wade, sported an elaborate and colorful costume resembling the comic book hero Aquaman, while Ricardo Bens Matos donned a muscleman body suit.

Mr. SOLA was crowned Mr. Millersville 2013 by the judges panel.
Mr. SOLA was crowned Mr. Millersville 2013 by the judges panel.

After a brief intermission, the talent portion of the contest commenced. Josh Hess started off the show with a drum accompaniment to the song “Thrift Shop” by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis. He was followed by his fellow competitors who had talents ranging from singing and guitar playing to piano to salsa dancing and Rubix Cube solving. Highlights include an original step routine by Omega Psi Phi’s Jovon Watts, and the provocative Paul Clemmer performing a tenor saxophone solo with no shirt, suspenders, sunglasses, and a flat cap.
Following the talent show, contestants next took part in the final part of the evenings competitions: the Q&A session. During this segment, each of the participants was asked a question, chosen at random, by the show’s hosts. They ranged from “What charity would you donate $1 billion to?” to “What makes Millersville University special to you?”.
After a long deliberation period, the judges were prepared to announce the results of the 2013 Mr. Millersville competition. The Snapper’s Zach Staab was named runner-up while MUTV’s John Coleman won the prize for People’s Choice, which was voted on at intermission by the audience. The top prize of the night was awarded to SOLA’s Ricardo Bens Matos and he was crowned this year’s Mr. Millersville.
With tearful eyes and a beaming smile, Bens Matos accepted his crown and addressed the audience. “My friends know how much I really wanted this,” he said. When asked why this win meant so much to him, he replied “As the hosts said earlier, I only learned English three years ago after coming to this country. This whole time I was worried about my responses and second-guessing whether I said what I meant. This just proves that I can achieve anything I set my mind to.”
The money that was awarded to the winners was deposited into the respective organizations’ accounts with separate donations benefiting all organizations involved. For the time being, Bens Matos will reign as Mr. Millersville until this time next year. For now, students can look back upon another successful Mr. Millersville competition.