Praying mantis

This does look like a Mantis religiosa. I think the thing that someone said here on projectnoah about the green Mantis religiosa having brown legs but the green Tenodera sinensis do not is true.

Thanks for the great info!!

Though it's hard to tell from this picture, I would say that this is either a European Mantis (Mantis religiosa) or a Chinese Mantid (Tenodera aridifolia sinensis). Those are the most common Mantids found in your area.

Sphodromantis viridis is an African species which is often kept as pets but is not found in the wild in North America.

Here are a couple of links to pages with pictures and descriptions of the European Mantis and Chinese Mantid:
Chinese Mantid: http://bugguide.net/node/view/10098
European Mantis: http://bugguide.net/node/view/22947

Both species have been introduced to North America as "beneficial" insects to help with pest control. They have established themselves in many areas.