Pageant veterans won preliminaries on Thursday, the second night of competition at the 54th annual Miss Mississippi pageant at the Vicksburg Convention Center.

Miss Pine Belt Gulf Coast Marie Wicks, 22, of Ocean Springs won the talent preliminary for her group, and Miss Metro Jackson Chelsea Rick, 21, of Fulton took the swimsuit preliminary.

Wicks performed Ludwig Van Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata Movement 3.”

“When I heard this piece,” she said after winning, “I fell in love with it.” Wicks said her practice time is determined by how busy she is.

“I’ve been playing the piano since I was 3,” said Wicks who gets a $300 scholarship with her win.