UW Rodeo Teams Start Slowly in Season Opener

A muddy mess of an arena was partially to blame as the University of Wyoming rodeo teams finished in the second tier in the season-opening competition last weekend at Chadron, Neb.

A steady rainfall Thursday and Friday left the Chadron State College (CSC) home arena slick and muddy for many of the competitors as the first of five fall rodeos on the Central Rocky Mountain Region (CRMR) docket got underway.

Both regional champion Gillette College clubs took first place in their respective divisions to take the early CRMR lead. A total of 10 rodeos will be held in the CRMR in the fall and spring seasons.

The national runner-up Cowgirls got off to a slow start to begin the new season with just 70 team points to place eighth at the CSC rodeo. The Pronghorns took the first team title with 405 points to finish a whopping 200 points ahead of Eastern Wyoming College, while Colorado State University-Pueblo was third with 160.

Senior Casey Reimler, from Rozet, scored all of the UW Cowgirls’ points in two separate events. She was on her way to winning the women’s goat tying event after posting the top time in the opening round. However, she was nailed with a no-time in the short go, leaving her out of the average. She scored 60 points for winning the long go.

She later added 10 points in the team standings by scoring sixth-place points in the opening round.

Just as Reimler did for the Cowgirls, Brock Wahlert scored all of the Cowboys’ team points.

The Casper senior was the bareback riding runner-up, scoring 135 points. He split second place in the opening round with two other riders and then had the second-best mark in the short go. He had the fourth-best time in steer wrestling’s long go but failed to get in a qualified time in the short go.

As a team, the Pokes were ninth among 13 teams that put up points at the CSC rodeo. The Cowboys had 165 points, while Gillette College posted 560 points for the opening team victory. Laramie County Community College finished second with 410 points, and the host Eagles were third with 370.

Sheridan College hosts this weekend’s regional rodeo.

For a list of team and individual winners from the CSC rodeo, click here.