If Miss Massachusetts’ piano playing and bikini didn’t catch the attention of audiences tonight, her “fun fact” did. The 23-year-old Boston native was attacked by a cheetah. And no, it didn’t happen on Boston Common.
Lauren Kuhn revealed that she had been lunged at by a cheetah while she was studying in the African country of Zambia. She was posing for photos with friends when the jungle cat swiped at her, leaving a scar on her thigh, according to the pageant's website.
Kuhn faced off against 52 other Miss America hopefuls in the annual pageant in Atlantic City this evening. The event was broadcast by ABC-TV. Kuhn was the fourth runner-up, and won a $10,000 scholarship.
Kuhn is a student at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine.
Kira Kazantsev, Miss New York, took the crown.
Jacqueline Tempera can be reached at jacqueline.tempera@globe.com. Follow her on twitter @jacktemp