UWs Ellerman Jumps into National Team Roping Contention

Now, it’s a waiting game for the University of Wyoming’s Brit Ellerman.

Ellerman and partner Seth Andersen of Gillette College successfully roped their third straight steer to put themselves in contention to win the team roping title this week at the College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) in Casper.

Despite having their slowest outing of the week Tuesday night with a 14.5-second effort -- which included a 5-second penalty -- they are sitting third in the average. The two ropers had never competed together as a team before the CNFR.

All that’s left is to find out where they will be seeded entering Saturday night’s short go round.

Ellerman, from Fort Lupton, Colo., and Andersen have wrapped up their three guaranteed rounds of competition, and not many team ropers are left this week in the third go round who can move them down, UW Coach George Howard says.

“They’re sitting in a very good spot right now, and they’re in contention,” Howard says. “Now, they just have to wait.”

The pair has clocked a three-round time 0f 27.2 seconds and is just six-tenths of a second out of second place. The leaders, Brody Adams and Clay Crozier of Colorado Northwestern Community College, lead the pack with a three-head time of 19.6 seconds.

Ellerman and Anderson, along with the rest of the ropers, had a tough time with “junk steers” Tuesday night, Howard says. He says the steers had been good up until the first evening performance, which accounted for some higher-than-normal times.

Ellerman caught the steer’s horns, but Andersen captured just one heel, giving the duo a 5-second penalty.

As a team, the Cowboys sit 28th with 85 points. The University of Tennessee-Martin leads with 470 points during the third round.

Only one UW Cowboy will compete Wednesday night -- Clayton Van Aken in tie down roping, where he has one recorded time on two-head.