Thirteen girls stand on the green and white field and try not to let their high heels sink into the grass. They grip the hands of their mothers standing next to them, listening to hear the announcer. A name is called, and a mother’s hand flies into the air in unconcealed excitement.

Homecoming queen was crowned tonight before Greenville and Texas faced off for the annual Homecoming game at Tiger Stadium at Grim Park. The queen was Jasmine Grace Brooks, and the maid of honor was Kiara Douglas.

Since Homecoming court was first announced on Oct. 7, the girls have been preparing for tonight’s presentation.

“It’s been crazy. I’ve been running around everywhere trying to find the dress, shoes, jewelry, makeup,” Harli Kilgore said. “Me and my mom have bought literally seven different dresses because we could not decide on one.”

Before the court was presented, the girls waited on the sidelines with their parents in a moment of nerves and excitement.

“I’m just really overwhelmed that tonight’s finally here after a lot of waiting and a lot of preparing,” Grace Hickey said. “I’m really excited to be able to go out on the field and enjoy tonight with my friends and my family.”

Each girl on court was presented, being escorted by parents or family friends on the field and having their achievements and goals announced. Once everyone had taken their places, Douglas was announced maid of honor.

“[Being maid of honor] was such a surprise. It was such an honor,” Douglas said. “I was just standing there, and then my parents were like ‘That’s you, step up.’ I could not move.”

Then the moment anticipated by the entire court and their families arrived: the crowning of the queen. After a brief pause following the announcement of the maid of honor, Brooks was announced queen.

“[Being crowned queen] means a lot to me. Today is my dad’s birthday, and he passed away a couple of years ago, so it’s kind of cool that I won queen on his birthday,” Brooks said. “My heart’s racing really bad right now.”

The student body voted on queen Oct. 18. The girl chosen reflects the values and principles of her fellow students.

“All of the girls on court could have been [queen], but I’m so glad it was Grace because she really deserves it,” Raga Justin said. “I was real stressed all week, but I’m really happy that I was a part of this experience.”