Photos: New queen crowned at Mattituck Strawberry Festival; champion emerges at shortcake eating contest

Francesca Lynch of Southold was crowned the 2022 Strawberry Queen at Saturday’s ceremony during the third full day of the Mattituck Lions Club Strawberry Festival.

Emma Wachtel of Greenport was announced as the runner-up. Last year’s queen, Ava Sannino helped officially welcome Francesca as the newest queen.

Shortly after the crowning of the queen, another tradition took centerstage with the World Strawberry Shortcake Eating Championship. The Major League Eating event featured 10 participants chowing down on as much shortcake as possible for eight straight minutes.

When it was over, Geoff Esper emerged the champion, having consumed 18 1/4 pounds of shortcake. The current record of 22 pounds set in 2018 remains intact.

The second place finisher, Nick Wehry, ate 16 pounds. Five contestants consumed 10 or more pounds and in total, all the contestants combined to take down 93 1/4 pounds.

The festival continues Sunday for its final day. Admission for adults and children 5 and older is $10. Children under 5 are free. There’s no admission Sunday for fathers when accompanied by a paid child.

See more photos below:

Photos by Jeremy Garretson