by Mike Bandy

On last night's episode of ANTM, Ondrei, the stunning 5'7" girl from Muskegon, MI, decided to leave. Due to the death of one of her brothers a couple of months before taping, Ondrei was dealing with a lot of emotional issues, and she didn't feel right continuing on in the competition. We spoke with Ondrei about how she's doing now, her favorite part of the entire experience, and what's coming up next for her.

Q. Mike, RealityWanted: I just wanted to express my condolences for your loss. How are you doing now?
A. Ondrei: It was definitely a hard time, but I'm doing okay. People are asking me if I have any regrets, and honestly I don't, because I needed time to deal with what was going on.

Q. Mike, RealityWanted: Though you were in the competition for a short time, did you make any lasting friendships with anyone?
A. Ondrei: Yes, I did, two girls that I love to death are Dominique and Angelia, I talk with them a lot. I definitely made close relationships with them, they're more like my sisters.

Q. Mike, RealityWanted: It seems like everyone was really supportive of your decision to leave the competition - what was the atmosphere like when you got home? Was everyone supportive?
A. Ondrei: Definitely...I think that for people who don't know me and people I don't know, there are people saying that I left and they don't know why, but people who know me best really supported my decision, and I got a lot of love and support from a lot of people.

Q. Mike, RealityWanted: What was your favorite part of the competition?
A. Ondrei: My favorite part of the competition was actually the bees shoot, even though it didn't go so well. I've never done anything like that before, and that was really exciting. I'll always be able to say I did a shot with bees crawling on me. That was my favorite part.

Q. Mike, RealityWanted: During the challenge this week where you confronted your worst critic, you were really emotional and got through a lot of stuff. Do you feel that that process was cathartic?
A. Ondrei: You know, I wouldn't necessarily say it helped me get through anything, but it made me realize that I had an issue. It was an eye opener for me and showed that I had issues that I had to deal with. It was more spiritual and emotional for me, rather than dealing with confronting [ideas] that I'm not good enough, because I know that I'm good enough.

Q. Mike, RealityWanted: Do you plan to continue pursuing a modeling career?
A. Ondrei: Absolutely...a lot of girls get on the show and give up afterwards, but I learned a lot about what I need to work on and how to take direction, and I have a team of people working for me to make sure that I get my career going, like my mom and my aunts and my family. I'm not going to stop after ANTM!

America's Next Top Model airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on the CW.

(Image courtesy of the CW)