R’Bonney Gabriel was crowned the winner of the Miss USA 2022 pageant competition that was held in Reno, Nevada at the Grand Sierra Resort.

Facing a panel of six judges from across industries, five finalists made it through a series of dramatic eliminations. While R’Bonney Gabriel won the crown, Morgan Romano of North Carolina was named the first runner up and Natalie Pieper of Nebraska being named the second runner up. 

Gabriel was crowned by the outgoing Miss USA 2021, Elle Smith. Her win at this pageant competition means that she will be participating in the upcoming Miss Universe 2022 which will be held on January 14, 2023 in New Orleans, Louisiana. 

Who is Morgan Romano?

Morgan Romano is an American pageant winner from Concord, North Carolina. She is a chemical engineer, a classically trained ballerina and has previously competed in various pageants. Romano is 25 years old. 

She has stated that in the future she wants to get a Juris Doctor degree so she can become a patent attorney. Romano volunteers for an after-school program called Project Scientist which aims to provide high quality STEM education to young girls. She also has her own initiative called Outside the Box which provides science kits to classrooms, children’s hospitals, libraries and students in need. 

Who is Natalie Pieper?

Natalie Pieper currently holds the title of Miss Nebraska USA, which she won in March earlier this year. Raised in Lincoln, Nebraska she currently works as a financial services litigator in Omaha. 

The trained classical ballet dancer graduated magna cum laude from Loyola University in Chicago with a bachelor of arts in Political Science. While in college, she interned at the US Supreme Court. After college she went to law school, graduating in 2021 from the Washington University St Louis School of Law.