Cowboys claim 1st rodeo team win of the season

Five UW team members scored 100 or more individual points last weekend to lead the Cowboys to their first title of the fall season with just one more rodeo left on the Central Rocky Mountain Region schedule until the spring season.

The Cowboys rolled to a season-best 730 points to win the Lamar Community College rodeo in Colorado. It’s the most points since they scored a team-record 855 points a year ago at the Central Wyoming College rodeo in Riverton.

Season leader Casper College finished second with 680 points. The UW win solidified its second place in the CRMR standings with 2,150 points with the Laramie County Community College rodeo this weekend in Cheyenne left on fall schedule. Casper College has 2,455 points with the T-Birds and Cowboys making it a two-team race for the top CRMR positions. Gillette College is third with 1,345 points.

After two straight wins in the region, the Cowgirls placed a close second at Lamar by scoring a season-low 220 points. But it was only 20 points back of front-running Eastern Wyoming College. Despite the low-points total, the Cowgirls increased their regional lead with 1,458.33 points. Casper College is second with 1,033.33, and Gillette College is a distant third with 780.

UW coach Beau Clark was pleased with both his teams’ performances last weekend, especially the men’s first win this season. He also pointed out more than 30 team members made Sunday’s short go in all six men’s and four women’s events.

“I really want to brag on the kids who are not on the points team each week,” Clark said. “We have so much depth this season, and sometimes it is a challenge, because we have kids not on the points team who are winning, and sometimes we are beating ourselves. But as a coach, I am so proud of all the kids.”

Only six men and four women are selected for the respective points teams at each rodeo, but non-points team members can compete as individuals in the weekly CRMR rodeos.

Even though the UW men did not produce an individual champion from the points team, their depth proved to be an asset with all six men contributing.

Houston Brown, of Miles City, Montana, and Austin Hurlburt, of Norfolk, Nebraska, paced the Cowboys by scoring nearly 350 points each. Brown was third in the saddle bronc average and fifth in team roping with Hurlburt, who also was fourth in the calf roping average.

Jase Staudt, from Nathrop, Colorado, had the highest placing among the Cowboys, finishing runner-up in team roping with partner Bryan Lemmon, of Casper College.

Both Caden Camp and Seth Peterson added 100 points each for UW. Camp, from Belgrade, Montana, was third in the calf roping average and added points in steer wrestling. Peterson, from Minot, North Dakota, took the short go in steer wrestling to place fourth in the average.

The final 40 team points came from Kemmerer’s Donny Proffit, who had the third-best short go round in bareback riding but did not place in the average.

All 220 team points came from two points team members for the Cowgirls.

Jacey Thompson, of Yoder, placed in two events. She was fifth in the goat tying average and sixth in breakaway roping for 80 points. Casey Reimler, from Rozet, had the weekend’s best showing for UW, winning the breakaway roping short go to finish second in the average for 140 points.

Several non-points team members also performed well for both the Cowboys and Cowgirls:

Chase Rose, from Lincoln, California, was the weekend’s top bareback rider, while Cash Wilson, of Wall, South Dakota, was the saddle bronc runner-up. The Cowboys swept the top five positions in tie-down roping with Wyatt Tarver, of Gillette, and Chadron Coffield, from Yuma, Colorado, finishing first and second, and Saratoga’s Jace Berger taking fifth. JC Flake, of Mesa, Arizona, was the top steer wrestler; Jace Logan, of Yampa, Colorado, was fourth; and Coffield placed sixth in the average. In team roping, Justene Hirsig, of Cheyenne, and Garrett Nunn, from Laramie, were fourth.

For the Cowgirls, Karson Bradley, of Big Piney, was the top barrel racer, and Rachael Calvo, of Bassett, Nebraska, and Kelsey Lensegrav, of Interior, South Dakota, were fourth and sixth, respectively. Faith Hoffman, from Kiowa, Colorado, placed fourth in goat tying.