By Michael Oleaga / m.oleaga@latinospost.com (staff@latinospost.com) | First Posted: Jan 10, 2013 04:50 PM EST

Can Wisconsin capture the Miss America crown for the second consecutive year?

Miss Wisconsin 2012's Kate Gorman is hoping so.

Gorman will be following the footsteps set by Miss Wisconsin 2011 Laura Kaeppeler when she won the top prize at Miss America 2012, defeating Miss Oklahoma, Miss New York, Miss Arizona, and Miss California.

Gorman, hailing from the town of Onalaska, has attended the University of Wisconsin (UW) and has received scholastic honors such as the UW-La Crosse Honor Roll and Dean's List, Viterbo University Honor Roll and Dean's List, and the Lorraine Gay Memorial Scholarship.

The 23-year-old Miss America 2013 contestant is looking to obtain a second Bachelor's of Science degree in Culinary Nutrition, which fits her platform issue at the pageants - Take a Healthy Bite out of Childhood Hunger.

Outside of the pageant life, Gorman maintains the culinary aspect of life and hopes to establish a culinary university for children.

Before winning Miss Wisconsin 2012, she won the Miss La Crosse and Oktoberfest competitions.

Prior to Wisconsin's victory in 2012, their last win was in 1972 with Terry Anne Meeusen, who has worked as co-host for the Christian Broadcasting Network's "The 700 Club."

The Miss America pageant touts itself as among the nation's largest scholarship providers for young women with $45 million in cash and scholarship assistance made available last year. The winner of Miss America does not get the entire prize as portions of the scholarship are made available to over 12,000 other women who compete in state and local competitions.

The annual Miss America pageant will be live on Saturday at 9 p.m. EST on ABC.

Gorman will compete against 52 other contestants:

Miss Alabama: Anna Laura Bryan
Miss Alaska: Debbe Jo Ebben
Miss Arizona: Piper Stoeckel
Miss Arkansas: Sloane Roberts
Miss California: Leah Cecil
Miss Colorado: Hannah Porter
Miss Connecticut: Emily Audibert
Miss Delaware: Alyssa Murray
Miss District of Columbia: Allyn Rose
Miss Florida: Laura McKeeman
Miss Georgia: Leighton Jordan
Miss Hawaii: Skyler Kamaka
Miss Idaho: Whitney Wood
Miss Illinois: Megan Ervin
Miss Indiana: Merrie Beth Cox
Miss Iowa: Mariah Cary
Miss Kansas: Sloane Lewis
Miss Kentucky: Jessica Casebolt
Miss Louisiana: Lauren Vizza
Miss Maine: Molly Bouchard
Miss Maryland: Joanna Guy
Miss Minnesota Siri Freeh
Miss Massachusetts: Taylor Kinzler
Miss Michigan: Angela Venditti
Miss Minnesota: Siri Freeh
Miss Mississippi: Marie Wicks
Miss Missouri: Tippe Emmott
Miss Montana: Alexis Wineman
Miss Nebraska: Mariah Cook
Miss Nevada: Randi Sundquist
Miss New Hampshire: Megan Lyman
Miss New Jersey: Lindsey Petrosh
Miss New Mexico: Candice Bennatt
Miss New York: Mallory Hagan
Miss North Carolina: Arlie Honeycutt
Miss North Dakota: Rosie Sauvageau
Miss Ohio: Elisa McCracken
Miss Oklahoma: Alicia Clifton
Miss Oregon: Nicole Mead
Miss Pennsylvania: Jordyn Colao
Miss Puerto Rico: Kiaraliz Media
Miss Rhode Island: Kelsey Fournier
Miss South Carolina: Ali Rogers
Miss South Dakota: Calista Kirby
Miss Tennessee: Chandler Lawson
Miss Texas: DaNae Couch
Miss Utah: Kara Arnold
Miss Vermont: Chelsea Ingram
Miss Virgin Islands: Aniska Tonge
Miss Virginia: Rosemary Willis
Miss Washington: Mandy Schendel
Miss West Virginia: Kaitlin Gates
Miss Wisconsin: Kate Gorman
Miss Wyoming: Lexie Madden