UW Rodeo Teams Continue to Roll in Regional Competition

More than halfway into the fall schedule, the University of Wyoming rodeo teams are settling in as the Central Rocky Mountain Region (CRMR) leaders in their respective divisions.

The Cowboys won for the second straight weekend by capturing the Sheridan College rodeo team title, while the Cowgirls were second after decisively taking the first two CRMR competitions.

Just the Lamar Community College rodeo in Colorado and the Laramie County Community College (LCCC) competition in Cheyenne over the next two weekends remain on the fall schedule.

“I was proud of both teams this weekend. Both squads gave a winning effort in the arena,” UW Coach Seth Glause says. “It’s a tough setup in the timed events, and our men’s experience definitely carried us through in the roping events. On the women’s side, we had some freshmen handle the setup very well.”

The Cowboys produced their best showing of the season, putting up 685 points -- outdistancing the host Generals by 255 points. Third went to Chadron State College (CSC) of Nebraska in the final men’s standings with 380.

Reigning regional all-around champion Traven Sharon came through for the Pokes, scoring major points in two events. The Ordway, Colo., sophomore won his strongest event -- saddle bronc riding -- when he rode his horse to the opening round’s best mark, then followed by splitting first in the short-go round. He later was fifth in tie-down roping, which gave him the all-around title.

Teammate Tate Talkington, of Scottsbluff, Neb., continued his torrid fall streak in tie-down roping, sweeping both the long- and short-go rounds to give him the average, while scoring a perfect 180 points for the team.

Three Cowboy State student-athletes continued to score major points for the Cowboys in their first years of competition for UW. Rozet’s Carter Hutchison placed in both tie-down roping and steer wrestling, finishing fourth and sixth, respectively, in the two events. Eian Smith, of Pinedale, split second in the bareback riding average thanks to his short-go win. And, Burns freshman Colby Smith added fifth-place points in the saddle bronc competition.

“Tate was able to 180 them in the calf roping, which was a big boost on the men’s team side,” Glause says. “Traven and Carter both made cowboy runs in the short round to get some points as well. Carter is showing he is a threat in three events as a freshman, and he has been solid through three rodeos.”

Glause adds that he was proud of the team’s bareback and bronc riders last weekend.

“The first go had a tough set of young horses, and our riders handled them well and set themselves up for success in the short go, with Eian winning the short round and splitting second in the average. Traven split the short round and won the average in the bronc riding. Colby and Trenton Rogers made two nice rides to place as well.”

Four other UW Cowboys also had good weekends. Kyler Clark, from Yoder, and Layne Palmer, competing for CSC, were the runners-up in team roping. Sam Gallagher, from Brighton, Colo., took third in steer wrestling, while teammate Bohdi Coombs, from Wellington, Colo., was fifth in the same event. Laramie’s Trenton Rogers was sixth in the bareback riding average.

Even though the Cowgirls were second at Sheridan last week, the UW women still control the regional competition heading down the stretch. They scored 370 points, while Gillette College won for the first time this season with 495 points. LCCC was third overall with 240 points.

Gillette freshman Shayda Lesmeister continued to make a name for herself in barrel racing, scoring a straight 50 points in the long and short-go rounds and also in the average to place her second overall. Landry Haugen, from Sturgis, S.D., scored points in a pair of events, taking fifth in breakaway roping and sixth in goat tying. Layni Stevens, of St. Lawrence, S.D., combined with Colorado State University’s Keith Gorman to place fourth in team roping. Regional goat-tying leader Josie Mousel, from Colman, S.D., won the opening round but did not place in the average.

A pair of Cowgirls also placed in their respective events over the weekend. Both Kassidy Dunagan, from Whitehall, Mont., and Katelynn Carroll, of Apple Valley, Calif., were fourth-place average finishers in goat tying and breakaway roping, respectively.

“Shayda is continuing to show consistency in the barrel race, winning second, and Landry is continuing to collect points in multiple events and made a veteran run in the breakaway to place solid in the average,” Glause says. “We missed a couple opportunities in the goat tying but performed well overall. Kassidy made a solid run in the goats to end up fourth.”

After three rodeos, the Cowgirls are still solidly in first place in the regional standings with 1,557.83 points, while Gillette College is second with 1,052.83 and LCCC is a distant third at 370. Just the top two teams in the final regional standings advance to next summer’s College National Finals Rodeo.

The Cowboys have opened up a 380-point lead over Gillette College in the men’s regional team race. The UW men have scored 1,680 points, while the Pronghorns have 1,300. Sheridan College sits third in the CRMR with 1,215.