Tough Go for Pair of UW Team Members at CNFR

A pair of University of Wyoming team members is up Friday with short go bids on the line at the College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) at the Casper Events Center. The competition ends the third round.

Kailee Webb, who put herself in contention with a 14.5-second time during her second barrel racing run, needs a similar round to put her among the top 10 competitors. She opened the week with a 14.85-second time, giving the Isabel, S.D., sophomore a combined time of 28.90. She placed third in the second go.

UW bull rider Jacob Smith needs just a qualifying ride to punch his ticket to Saturday’s championship round. The LaSalle, Colo., sophomore opened the competition Sunday with the first round’s second-best score of 77 points. He was then tossed in round two, but not many riders have covered two bulls this week.

The top 12 individuals in each event after three rounds move on to Saturday’s short go.

Goat tyer Amelia Anderson has an outside chance of being among the top 12 qualifiers, but needs to improve her two round times. The Forsythe, Mont., junior had to scramble after opening with a 9.9-second time. She split eighth place with 6.5 seconds in round two for a combined time of 16.4 seconds.

Two UW team members were up Thursday night, but both were out of the running for short go bids in their respective events.

Goat tyer Karlee Peterson’s first CNFR didn’t end well. She stumbled on her dismount, and the goat then kicked hard on the tie, leaving the Sturgis, S.D., freshman with a time of 8.9 seconds. Peterson’s two first-round times were 7.5 and 8.9 seconds, giving her a three-round accumulated time of 25.3 seconds.

UW senior Dillon Simonson’s career came to an end Thursday in steer wrestling. The Purdum, Neb., bulldogger had a tough time taking down his steer when the steer reared its head twice, giving Simonson a tough time turning it over. Simonson wound up with an 8.9-second time to go along with an opening time of 7.1 seconds. Simonson’s no-time in the middle round left him out of contention.