Mariselle Morales
KNOXVILLE - Mariselle Morales, a 2008 graduate from the University of Tennessee, will be competing in the Miss America pageant as Miss Puerto Rico on Saturday.
Morales won the Miss America Puerto Rico pageant in July.
"I'm extremely excited," she said in a statement released by UT. "I never thought I'd be competing for Miss America, and the first time I tried, I won."
Morales, who grew up in South Florida, followed UT's women's swim team. When she came to Knoxville to visit the university during her senior year of high school, she knew that UT was where she wanted to go.
"It was the only school I applied to," she said. "I had an amazing time, and I absolutely loved it."
Morales got her bachelor's degree in political science, and although she was not on the UT swimming team, she worked as a lifeguard at the student recreation center on campus.
She is now living in San Juan, Puerto Rico, working as a professional model, pursuing a record deal and devoting her time to representing the Miss America organization. She has plans to attend the Music Conservatory of Puerto Rico to earn a graduate degree.
She'll likely be recognizable as the sole UT graduate in the 2011 Miss America lineup.
"I want to be decked out in orange," she said.
More details as they develop online and in Friday's News Sentinel.
© 2011, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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Comments » 3
Digger writes:
Hmmm... If she wins, she'd be the first Miss America that doesn't even live in America. LOL
WhitePineVol77 writes:
PR is a US territory, my friend. As such, it is part of the US. Did you skip geography or social studies classes?
shipperman#280095 writes:
She won't win on beauty. She is ok, but not a model
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