The morning after her business won a competition, Jessica Grigsby still couldn’t believe she won.

Grigsby is the owner and sonographer at First Sight Frederick, which provides expectant parents and families with high-quality ultrasound images of their unborn child.

The company won the an award for new companies at the S.H.E. Pitch competition at Hood College Wednesday night. The event is part of S.H.E. Week, an annual celebration and highlighting of women in business in Frederick County, focusing on the principles of Strength, Heart, and Equality.

“I don’t think I’ve ever won anything in my life like that,” she said Thursday.

The S.H.E. Pitch competition was a partnership of the Maryland Women’s Business Center, the Frederick County Office of Economic Development, the City of Frederick Department of Economic Development, the Frederick County Chamber of Commerce, Orangetheory Fitness and Verita Commercial Real Estate.

The event at Hood College’s Hodson Auditorium was one of the capping events for S.H.E. Week.

In the pitch competition, business owners make 5-minute explanations to a panel of judges on what their business does and why they should get the prize money that comes with the contest.

The contest included two categories: a Growth Stage for companies that are at least two years old and an Idea Stage categories for businesses that have been open less than two years.

The winner of Wednesday’s Growth Stage category was English With Purpose, which provides English language coaching and communication training for international workers in competitive fields.

Each winner receives a $5,250 cash prize, among other prizes.

The People’s Choice Award, determined by voting at Wednesday’s event and including a $500 cash prize, went to Zakia Galliard of Natural Glory.

The business helps women dealing with hair loss or scalp issues with hair restoration through natural methods.

Competing in the process was an amazing experience, Galliard said.

“They just gave us everything we needed,” she said.

Trying to tell your business’s story in just five minutes was really difficult, Julie Yoder of English With Purpose said Wednesday night.

“I was cutting [from her presentation] until 1 o’clock this afternoon,” she said.

But she also felt like it gave her a helpful perspective on her business that can easily get lost in the day-to-day aspect of actually running it.

It’s easy to get stuck in the details of the business and not step back to look at the bigger picture of what you’re trying to do, she said.

Julie Christiansen, owner of the outdoor hiking and adventure company Hippy Viking, said the process forces you to figure out things about what your company is and what you want it to be.