Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Monday By the Numbers: Deshauna Barber is tops among 52 Miss USA contestants

2016 Miss USA Pageant at T-Mobile Arena

Tom Donoghue / DonoghuePhotography.com

Miss District of Columbia Deshauna Barber is crowned Miss USA during the Miss USA Pageant at T-Mobile Arena on Sunday, June 5, 2016, on the Las Vegas Strip. 2015 Miss USA Olivia Jordan is at right.

2016 Miss USA Pageant

Miss District of Columbia Deshauna Barber is crowned Miss USA during the Miss USA Pageant at T-Mobile Arena on Sunday, June 5, 2016, on the Las Vegas Strip. Launch slideshow »

2016 Miss USA Pageant: Prelims

The 2016 Miss USA Pageant preliminary competition Wednesday, June 1, 2016, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Launch slideshow »

Life’s rich pageant flew through VegasVille this week and was capped Sunday night when a member of the U.S. Army won the Miss USA Pageant.

Miss District of Columbia Deshauna Barber topped a field of 52 at T-Mobile Arena on Sunday night, winning the 2016 Miss USA title in a show broadcast on Fox. Barber topped a final three of Miss Hawaii Chelsea Hardin as first runner-up and Miss Georgia Emanii Jovan Davis as second runner-up.

Barber is the first active military rep to claim the Miss USA tiara. Serving in the armed forces is a family tradition; her parents were in the military and met in the Army. Barber is a Virginia State University graduate, IT analyst and logistics commander for the 988th Quartermaster Detachment Unit in Fort Meade, Md.

Also, she is articulate, sharp and staggeringly beautiful.

We focus on Barber and the pageant in this special installment of Monday By the Numbers:

17: Barber’s age when she enlisted in the Army.

26: Barber’s age today.

22: Women approved by the Army in April to enter the infantry and armor officers to engage in ground combat.

15.3: Percent of active-duty personnel in the U.S. military personnel who are women.

14: Years since a Washington, D.C., contestant has won Miss USA.

26: Age of Miss Virginia Desi Williams, a Top 10 finalist and the pageant’s oldest contestant (she turns 27 on June 14; Barber’s birthday is in December).

20: Evening gowns Williams tried on before deciding on the one to wear Sunday night.

3: Evening gowns Miss Connecticut Tiffany Ann Teixeira tried on before deciding on the one to wear Sunday night.

4: Evening gowns shaded in white among the Top Five finalists.

1: Tangerine gown, worn by Miss California Nadia Grace Mejia, in the Top Five.

2: Lengthy pauses in the interview segment of Mejia, who was asked about how to remedy the social chasm between the rich and poor.

1: Twitter post from the @MissUSA official account showing a video of SpongeBob SquarePants nervously chewing his nails.

6: Peak Billboard Hot 100 chart position for “I Want It That Way,” performed by The Backstreet Boys, who escorted the final three around the stage at T-Mobile.

125,000: Number of people who have attended events at T-Mobile since it opened April 6.

Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at Twitter.com/JohnnyKats. Also, follow Kats on Instagram at Instagram.com/JohnnyKats1.

Join the Discussion:

Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.

Full comments policy