UW’s Day Remains Second in CNFR Goat Tying, Wang Has Best Bulldogging Time

You can’t get more consistent than the University of Wyoming’s Riata Day.

For the second straight day, the Fleming, Colo., Cowgirl nailed a 6.2-second time in goat tying at the College National Finals Rodeo early Tuesday afternoon. The day before, she recorded the exact same time.

The UW senior’s two-round time of 12.4 seconds still leaves her second in the average, but she has narrowed the gap against national leader Tori Brower, of Tarleton State, who is a scant tenth of a second better at 12.3. Day’s time also was the second round’s third-best time.

Day’s goal is to stay consistent throughout the week.

“This whole week is about consistency. If you can have consistent runs all week, you’re kind of likely to make it back to the short round,” Day says. “I’m just so glad I was able to put together another good run today and, hopefully, another one Thursday night.”

UW bulldogger Jacob Wang was a little long on his first run, meaning that he knew he needed to pick up the pace a little bit Tuesday morning. It was more than a little bit.

The Baker, Mont., native knocked 3.6 seconds off his first-round steer wrestling time from the day before to put himself solidly in the average for a chance to qualify for Saturday night’s short go. His 4.2 in the second slack session was the second round’s best time.

After producing a 7.8 on his first run during Monday’s slack round -- when he struggled to turn his steer over -- Wang put it all together in round two, moving up to the eighth position in the average at 12 seconds.

“More than anything, I knew that I had to make a good run today and do my job the best I could,” he says. “Being three seconds better is a lot. I was really focused today in doing my job no matter what steer I drew or what anybody else had done. It just matters what I do on the steer I have.”

Wang’s performance not only helped himself, but the team as well.

“I like to get some team points, which would be a wonderful opportunity, but I also would like to get some points for myself as well and stay in the average,” he adds.

Wang won’t have to wait too long -- his third round run is Tuesday night.

Other performances  by UW competitors during the final slack round were:

-- Colton Farrow, from Greybull, set himself up for a possible short go bid when he rode CC Blue to a 76.5-point mark Tuesday morning, giving him 146.5 points on two. He will find out soon if he remains in contention when he has his third ride later in the evening performance.

After scoring 70 points in the first round Sunday, Farrow knew he drew a good horse during the final slack round at the Ford Wyoming Center.

“She was everything that I expected. She had a little less spin. She bucked all the way through it and kept kicking out -- it gave me a chance to spur her on a little bit,” he says. “This was a better score than Sunday, so I’m pretty happy about that. It sets me up OK on the average.”

-- Josie Mousel, from Colman, S.D., moved into short go contention with a solid goat tying time of 6.8 seconds to go along with a 7.6 opening mark. Her 14.4 on two two is good for 12th in the average.

-- Just minutes later, teammate Landry Haugen, of Sturgis, S.D., matched Day’s 6.2-second time in the round to also remain alive in the overall goat tying average. Her two-head time of 14.1 puts her in the average. Both she and Mousel compete Wednesday night in the third round.

-- Earlier in the morning, Haugen came out with a determined breakaway roping run to record a 2.6-second time. She had a no-time earlier in the week and closes her three rounds of breakaway roping competition Friday night.

-- Emme Norsworthy, of Thermopolis, was better on her second barrel racing run when she stopped the clock in 14.54 seconds, giving her an overall time of 29.66 and leaving her with an opportunity for a short round bid. She moved up to 20th in the average after the completion of round two. She competes again Wednesday night.

-- Rayne Grant, from Wheatland, was knocked out of her short go bid when she tipped over the first barrel minutes after Norsworthy’s run. A 10-second penalty turned what would have been a contending time into a 24.16-second run. Her first round time of 14.57 was among the top 10, but her two-round total jumped to 38.73 seconds. Grant’s third run is Thursday.

-- Rhett Witt, of Valentine, Neb., was out to score round points for his teammates, and now, it’s a waiting game to see if his tie down roping time holds up. After a no-time during Monday’s slack, Witt managed to stop the clock in 8.8 seconds, which was the sixth-best of the second round. His third-round attempt comes Wednesday night.

-- Witt suffered his second straight no-time later in the morning when his steer stopped and turned sharply to the right just as  the UW competitor was making his dismount to grab the horns. His final run is Tuesday night.

-- The tough-luck week for team ropers Bodie Mattson, of Sturgis, S.D., and Troupe Coors, from Longmont, Colo., continued with a no-time when Mattson’s rope slipped over the steer’s horns.