UW Cowboys Sweep Fall Rodeo Schedule

Not even an 810-point performance from a regional rival over the weekend could keep the University of Wyoming men’s rodeo team from sweeping all five Central Rocky Mountain Region (CRMR) rodeos during the fall schedule.

The fall portion of the CRMR 10-rodeo slate came to a close with the Cowboys atop the leader board for the fifth consecutive weekend. The UW men outpointed the regional field with another strong performance with 885 points at the closing Lamar (Colo.) Community College rodeo. The Cowboys scored 865 points or better each weekend, including a school-record 965 earlier in the year.

Heading into the spring season next March, the Cowboys are clearly the favorites to repeat as CRMR men’s champions, having accumulated 4,490 points. Casper College, which had its best showing of the season with 810 points last weekend, trails UW in the overall regional team standings with 2,620 points. Third is Laramie County Community College with 1,990 points.

Not only are the Cowboys making noise on the regional level, but the UW men also held a nearly 400-point lead over Iowa Central Community College, of Fort Dodge, Iowa, for the national points lead heading into last weekend’s final rodeo.

And it’s apparent that the Cowboys accomplished their strong fall season with a balanced attack on both ends of the arena. In fact, UW men lead four of the six individual CRMR events, with Garrett Uptain, of Craig, Colo., leading the way with the leads in both saddle bronc and bull riding.

Uptain led the charge at Lamar, winning in bull riding and also finishing second in saddle bronc riding to pad his overall all-around lead.

The Cowboys won the rodeo with just four of the points team members scoring over the weekend.

-- Chadron Coffield, of Yuma, Colo., picked up a pair of second-place finishes in both tie down roping and steer wrestling. He is the regional calf roping leader.

-- Brice Patterson, from Bozeman, Mont., had a perfect two bareback riding rounds, posting the top marks in both the short and long go rounds to win the average.

-- Donny Proffit, from Kemmerer, was the bareback riding runner-up at Lamar. He is the regional leader in the event, while Patterson is second.

Points team member Austin Hurlburt, from Norfolk, Neb., is second in the regional steer wrestling competition.

The UW women rebounded from a tough rodeo two weeks ago to place third at the Lamar Community College rodeo with 195 points to move into sole possession of third place in the region. The Cowgirls are the three-time defending CRMR champions.

At Lamar, Northeastern Junior College won for the first time this season, topping the field with 277 points. Second went to Gillette College with 230 points, while the Cowgirls wound up with 195.

Gillette College goes into the spring season as regional leaders with 1,505 points, while Casper College is 300 points back of the Pronghorns. The UW women are 500 points behind Gillette for the year.

Taylour Latham, of Roosevelt, Utah, scored 130 of the team’s total points for the Cowgirls. She had the fifth-fastest time in the opening round of goat tying, then moved up in the short go by placing second, giving her the overall win in the average. She is the regional goat tying leader, just five points ahead of teammate Riata Day, of Fleming, Colo.

Teammate Makenna Balkenbush, from Sheridan, was sixth in the goat tying average at Lamar.

Even though she wasn’t on the points team this past weekend, Jackson’s Hailey Hardeman is the CRMR breakaway roping leader.