Rodeo ready to ride in Sterling

With only two rodeos left of the season, including this weekend’s Northeastern Junior College rodeo in Sterling, Colo., rodeo individuals are fighting for final average positions, Rodeo Coach Dustin Luper said.

“It’s getting hard,” Luper said. “They’re learning how to deal with the pressure [of getting down to the final rodeos].”

At last weekend’s Casper Rodeo, the women’s team placed fifth out of eight teams, with only two cowgirls placing in the short round.

Kelsey Scott, sophomore of Douglas, Wyo., made the short go in team roping with her partner from Gillette College, but failed to place.

Scott shone in breakaway calf roping, however, and placed second overall with times of 2.8 and 3.0 seconds in the long and short rounds, respectively.

“Kelsey really has that momentum going,” Luper said. “She’s always roped good, but now she’s just got that confidence, so she’s on fire.”

Stormy Fink, freshman of Billings, Mont., placed tenth in the short go of barrel racing with times of 15.78 and 15.79 seconds.

“Stormy has been real consistent,” Luper said, but teammate Kaylee Gallino, sophomore of Wasta, S.D., is on Fink’s tail.
“[Gallino’s] taking the slack out of the chain,” Luper said. “She’s hunting the barrel racing title.”

The men’s team landed seventh of ten teams at the last rodeo.

Whitten Hoover, sophomore of Ainsworth, again placed in the top three in bareback broncs, resulting in second place overall with scores of 70 points in the long round and 68 in the short round.

“Whitten is starting to handle that pressure of coming from fourth place to second really well,” Luper said.
Ty Werdel, sophomore of Chadron, placed a close fourth behind Hoover.

“The two other bareback bronc riders [Werdel and Jeddidiah Wilson, sophomore of Sugar City, Colo.] are battling it out for third,” Luper said.” I’m pretty proud of them.”

Clinton Lambrecht, freshman of Wood River, and Kody Schwager, junior of Bartlett, made the short round of team roping, but did not place once there.