Three Upstate contestants dominate in Thursday preliminaries at pageants

Four winners for the Miss South Carolina and Miss South Carolina Teen pageants were announced after the third and final night of preliminary competition Thursday at the Township Auditorium.

In the race for Miss South Carolina, Miss Simpsonville Mary Grace Nasim, 19, of Greenville won the talent preliminary singing “Queen of the Night Aria,” and Miss Inman Lustra Miller, 22, of Spartanburg won the swimsuit preliminary.

In Miss South Carolina Teen, Miss Bluffton Teen Hannah Brown, 17, of Bluffton won the talent preliminary singing “Time to Say Goodbye,” while Miss Hilton Head Island Teen Sarah Hamrick, 17, of Cowpens won the evening gown/onstage question preliminary competition.

The Miss South Carolina and Miss South Carolina Teen pageants will conclude this week with the final competition for the teens at 7 p.m. Friday, when the new Miss South Carolina Teen will be crowned. The final competition for the Miss contestants starts with a pre-show at 7 p.m. Saturday, when the new Miss South Carolina will be crowned live on WACH FOX TV. Tickets are available at Ticketmaster.com and at the Township Auditorium box office, (803) 576-2350.

Miss South Carolina 2015 will compete for the title of Miss America in Atlantic City, N.J., in September.

Miss South Carolina Teen 2015 will compete for the title of Miss America’s Outstanding Teen in Orlando, Fla., in August.