FIND A CONTRACTOR BUYER'S GUIDE
BECOME AN INDUSTRY PARTNER
MCAA Logo
MEMBER LOGIN JOIN
NEWS
The 2026 MCAA Annual Online Auction is Now Open ↗

2026 Skills Challenge and Fastest Trowel on the Block Winners



The MCAA and masonry industry as a whole thanks everyone that came out to support the Skills Challenge and Fastest Trowel on the Block competitions at the 2026 World of Concrete. 

In case you missed it, here are the First, Second, and Third place winners of all Skills Challenge Competition Levels:

First Year:

1st Place:  Adrianna Maziarz, Pumford Construction - Midland, MI

2nd Place: Luis Sontay, Adams Masonry - Chattanooga, TN

3rd Place : Isaac Jasso, AZ Keystone Masonry - Tucson, AZ


Second Year:

1st Place: David Hernández Herrera, Whitman Mansonry - Raleigh, NC

2nd Place: Mason Perez, Mason Contractors Association of Western Pennsylvania - Greensburg, PA

3rd Place : Mason Panko, Leidal & Hart Mason Contractors - Bay City, MI


Third Year:

1st Place: Samuel Berryman, The Witmer Group - Fleetwood, PA

2nd Place: Jesse Biller, Mason Contractors Association of Western Pennsylvania - Greensburg, PA

3rd Place: Robert Lopez, Sun Valley Masonry - Tucson, AZ


Here are the First, Second, and Third place contestants of the Fastest Trowel on the Block:

1st Place: Roberto Cimental
Tender: Mark Diaz
JG Block Co - Phoenix AZ

2nd Place: Noe Martinez
Tender: Jonathan Martinez
Stone Cold Masonry - Phoenix AZ

3rd Place: Gerardo Patlan
Tender: Robert Patlan
Vulcan Fence - Phoenix AZ
About: Convention
 0
GEN NXT: Mason Paolini
May 2026

This month, the MCAA got to talk with Mason Paolini, a mason who has a clear passion and talent for the trade he has such high praise for. Read about Mason’s story and why he sees a future in this industry. Mason Paolini’s career began with a simple desi

Justin Stengel
GEN NXT
Read More
Marvelous Masonry: Tianjin Zhongshuge Library
May 2026

It is not unusual today for masonry to be treated as a surface decision rather than a structural one. Too often, brick enters a project late in the process, trimmed back by budgets or reduced to a veneer once the “real” building work is finished. The Tian

Cass Stern
Marvelous Masonry
Read More
Fechino Files: Concrete Pavers around a Pool
May 2026

Many folks over the years have placed concrete pavers around their pool as a nice form of decorative pool deck. Early in the 2000’s, I took a class held by the Interlocking Concrete Paver Institute, then known as the ICPI. At the time I attended the class

Steven Fechino
Fechino Files
Read More
Chairman's Message: Staying the Course
May 2026

Spring is one of my favorite times of year. There’s energy in the air. Jobs are picking up. Crews are hitting their rhythm. Schedules are filling up. You can feel momentum building again. And every year around this time, I find myself thinking about con

Kent Huntley
Chairman’s Message
Read More