The 2025 Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival Princess is Pineville’s own Ava Grace Arnett.

Ava is the daughter of Chris and Heather Arnett of Pineville. She was escorted by fellow PHS senior Dylan Abner.

She said it was truly an honor to be named the Princess of the 94th KMFL

“Growing up around the festival, it’s always been a dream of mine to wear this pearl crown and be the princess,” Arnett said. “It’s not even hit me yet. I can’t really explain the excitement.”

Arnett has not only attended the festival in her home town for as long as she can remember, she’s been a part of it from the time she was little as a member of the miniature court and later as a high school attendant in the queen’s court.

“From the little girl carrying the queen’s crown through Laurel Cove to now a princess — it’s just so amazing,” she said.

Arnett was chosen as the KMLF Princess from a field of 15 candidates from high schools all across the 13th Region and from as far away as Lexington.

She added that being a candidate gave her a whole new appreciation for the festival.

“I look at the festival in a totally different way now. Just the amount of work that goes into getting the candidates here and to all of the things they do. You look at it from the outside and it’s just different when you go in, you see a whole different side of things,” she said.

Arnett has signed to run track at the Union Commonwealth University where she will be attending this fall.

“I just want to thank everybody who supported me,” she said.

KMLF President John Combs had the honor of crowning Arnett as the new princess at Friday evening’s coronation. The night’s festivities were capped off with the traditional grand march.

Madison Rylee York, from Rockcastle County High School, was named Miss Photogenic while Kelsie Blake Smith, from Knox Central, was named Miss Congeniality and Daniel Wilder, escort of Barbourville High School’s Madalyn Elizabeth Taylor, was named Best Escort.

Tanner Hesterberg served as the Master of Ceremonies for the Princess Coronation and the event featured music from Dixieland South.