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Carlisle is no stranger to the name Billy Owens making headlines.
In recent news, however, the name isnāt referring to the Carlisle High School basketball legend (he of the four straight state titles) and Syracuse University star (he scored 1,840 points in three college seasons) who played 14 years in the NBA.
Instead, it refers to his daughter, Billie LaRaƩ Owens, who recently earned her own crown as Miss Pennsylvania USA.
Relief and excitement were two of the many emotions that swooped through Billieās mind as her name echoed from the speaker system at Johnstownās Richland Performing Arts Center during the 2022 Miss Pennsylvania USA pageant April 24.
āRight before they called my name, I started tearing up,ā she said. āI just donāt know if I had that feeling that all of [my] hard work was about to pay off … like, OK this is it, this is about to happen.ā
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The hard work Billie, 25, spoke of was not only through her preparation for this yearās competition, but also for the past four Miss Pennsylvania USA pageants.
She placed as the first runner-up in both the 2019 and 2020 pageants, and then took fourth runner-up last year.
āI came super close each time and a lot of people were in my ear telling me to give up and move on, thereās bigger and better things out there. But pageantry turned into my sport, essentially, so I wanted to keep going after it,ā Billie said. āIām happy I did, because if I didnāt I wouldnāt be competing in Miss USA which is a dream of mine.ā
All in the family
To her, the title serves as a symbol of hard work and resiliency. A spirit of competition runs in the Owens family and thatās what kept her going year after year. Her mom, Nicole, graduated from Syracuse in 1994.
āWe work toward things that we want, we try not to give up, so just having that mentality and that drive to accomplish a goal kept me going,ā Billie said. āAnd being so close, itās like how am I going to quit when I can taste it?ā
She said sheās extremely close with her father and claimed that being named after him set her up for a good relationship from a young age. Hard work is the most important quality her father instilled in her through his basketball career, which included his role in Carlisle Area High Schoolās unprecedented four consecutive state championships in the ā80s.
āHe has shown me the importance of hard work and if you have a talent at something you work toward it and try to use that to the best of your ability,ā she said.
Billy said he experienced similar emotions as his daughter from his seat as he watched Billie receive her crown.
āIt was exciting, actually it was almost like I was playing in a basketball game,ā he said. āMy hands were sweating and my forehead was sweating, it was just nerve-wracking to see her accomplish a dream that she had four or five years ago.ā
Billyās voice had been one of the ones encouraging his daughter to quit after last yearās competition. He said he felt the competition was unfair and expressed his awareness of mental health concerns related to pageantry.
āI told her she should just put it to bed and move on,ā he said. āShe said no, this was something she wants to win, so she ended up winning and I was happy for her.ā
Hard work and a competitive nature arenāt the only qualities that run in the Owens family. At 5 feet, 10 inches tall, Billie said she figured she had to do something with her height.
āI wasnāt following in my dadās footsteps or in my brotherās footsteps and playing basketball,ā she said. āSo you know, I always had this passion for fashion and all of that, so I thought modeling would be my best bet in doing that.ā
Her younger brother Chaz, a 6-foot, 5-inch sophomore, played forward on the Syracuse menās basketball team the past two seasons. He entered the transfer portal in April, according to syracuse.com, after appearing in just six games this year.
Billie also has older siblings, LaVail and Lonaa, along with younger sibling, Skyla ā a twin with Chaz.
Modeling to pageantry
Billie started modeling when she was 16, however, she didnāt begin in pageantry until later. She said did runway and fit modeling jobs here and there with brands like Urban Outfitters, Anthropology and QVC. After she finished college in 2018, Billie said she did a prom gown expo in Atlanta. When that wrapped up, Billie said she was in the airport on her way back to her home in Phoenixville, near Philadelphia, when a friend told her she should go into pageantry.
āI was like absolutely not, it was just something Iād never thought of,ā Billie said.
She said her friend told her she had the modeling experience as well as the āspeaking partā down because Billie majored in broadcast and digital journalism during her time at Syracuse University.
She said modeling doesnāt really require much speaking, however pageantry does. In fact, Billie said it makes up a third of the competition. Pageant contestants include personal interviews before judges who can ask any variety of questions, meaning they have to be quick on their feet, she said.
āI feel like itās not necessarily what youāre saying but how you answer a question, how you carry yourself while youāre answering it, and your delivery, so thatās a huge part when it comes to pageants,ā Billie said.
She said her time earning a degree in broadcast and digital journalism at Syracuse gave her the ātools of speakingā she needed and her participation in the previous three pageants helped her to develop the content of what she said.
The other two thirds of the competition involve on-stage performances in swimwear and evening gowns.
She said that on the first day of the competition, all contestants participate in the personal interviews as well as the swimwear and evening gown performances. The second day, the top 16 girls advanced and did evening gown and swimwear again. From there, the judges cut down to the top six girls who were each asked an on-stage question before placements were announced.
Billie said pageantry taught her that she can accomplish anything.
āA lot of these girls start competing at a young age and I didnāt,ā she said. āI started competing, I think I was 21 or 22, so I was a little late to the game and it just taught me that once I put my mind [to something] I will make it happen and that I am dedicated and motivated, and I wonāt let anything stand in my way of accomplishing my goal and pursuing the dream.ā
Training, past and future
Meeting this goal involved a slew of training.
āEach year, I think my preparation was a little different than the year before,ā Billie said.
In 2019, she said she went into it with a mindset of understanding that pageantry was new to her, so she worked with people in the industry to set herself up for success and did well in the competition. The following year, she figured that since sheād done so well the year before, sheād keep doing what she was doing and it would happen for her.
When it didnāt, Billie said she went into āpageant drill sergeant modeā in 2021.
āI was practicing interview questions like with my sister every night, I was working out in the gym six times a week, I was practicing walking in the gym in my high heels,ā she said. āWhile everyone is sweating lifting weights, Iām over here strutting in front of a mirror. I just took it like it was training for the Olympics, like I ate, slept, breathed pageantry.ā
This year, Billie said she let go of pageant prep and just trusted herself.
ā[I] focused on preparing my mind and being happy with who I was and who Iām becoming, so this time I focused mostly just on the mental aspect, being truly happy where Iām at and at the end of the day, thatās I believe what took me across the finish line,ā she said.
Itās this final approach Billie said she wants to take with her as she prepares to compete for Miss USA, which will be held this fall, but a date and location have not been finalized.
Owens told syracuse.com she is running for Miss USA on a platform of female empowerment as an official ambassador for HoopHers, a girls empowerment program for Philadelphia Youth Basketball. The nonprofit group supports young people and provides a safe space for basketball and character development.
If she wins Miss USA, the next (and final stop) would be the Miss Universe pageant which will take place shortly after Miss USA, Billie said.
āI guess Iām just super excited for this chapter of my life,ā she said. āI really want to do well at Miss USA and take home the crown, but if I can develop as a person and meet people throughout this reign and really develop good connections, I feel like Iām already a winner.ā
#Carlisle88 Photos: Billy Owens returns to Carlisle

Billy Owens.

Billy Owens.


Billy Owens had some fun recreating the photo shoot from the 1988 Sentinel tab.

Billy Owens

Billy Owens with the original cover from the 1988 commemorative Sentinel tab in 2018. Take a closer look: his shoes were white, the shorts were shorter, the hair a bit thicker and the bison at mid-court was different.Ā

Billy Owens and older brother Michael Owens.

Michael Owens, right, stands with his brother and dad, Billy and Bill Owens, on Coach Lebo Court at Carlisle High School. Michael returned to his hometown after more than a decade living in California.

Billy Owens in front of the banners in Gene Evans Gymnasium for his NFHS Hall of Fame and the four state championships.

Billy Owens.

Billy Owens.

Billy Owens stands outside Gene Evans Gymnasium talking with athletic director George Null and others Monday, his first visit to Carlisle since 2013.
Maddie Seiler is a news reporter for The Sentinel and cumberlink.com covering Carlisle and Newville. You can contact her at mseiler@cumberlink.com and follow her on Twitter at: @SeilerMadalyn
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