SNYDER, Texas — A pair of Tarleton State University cowboys wound up with championship buckles at the Western Texas College National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association stop in Snyder last weekend.
Saddle bronc rider Bailey Small scored a first-place 86.5 in the preliminary round and added an 80 in the short go for a two-ride 166.5. Team roper Kadin Babb roped two steers in under 10 seconds, an opening-round 4.8 and a 5.1 in the finals, for first in each round and overall.
The pair led Tarleton’s charge to fourth place in the rodeo, which keeps them atop the NIRA Southwest Region standings.
Other top Tarleton State finishers at Snyder were rough stock riders Ira Dickinson, a saddle bronc rider who earned a 79.5 for second in the long go and then a 78 in the finals for 157.5 and a tie for third; bull rider Mason Spain, who posted rides of 68.5 and 75 for a 143.5 total and fourth in the average (while Riggen Hughes’ long-go 67 landed him in eighth in the event overall); and Roedy Farrell, who took sixth in bareback bronc riding with his 146, which included a first-round-best 78.
Tie-down roper Wyatt Crandall split fourth place with a 17.6 on runs of 8.3 and 9.3; team ropers Karson Stevens and Tucker Guy were sixth, one place in front of teammate Conner Callahan; and Teel Sikes and Landris White were 10th and11th in steer wrestling.
The Tarleton State women’s team finished seventh at WTC, paced by a quartet of top-10 barrel racing finishers.
Lindsey-Kay Reichert posted two sub-14 second times on her way to a two-run 27.61 total and second in the average; Bryanne Cude’s 14.08-14.02–28.10 was fifth, one place in front of Jordan Driver’s 14.11-14.10–28.21; and Samantha Doran was 10th in the average on the strength of a 14.09 in the long go.
Shyanne Bauerle finished in a fifth-place tie with her 6.4-7.5–13.9 in goat tying, and Rayme Jones’ 6.6-8.4–15.0 was seventh.Both Tarleton State teams return to action this weekend at the Howard College Rodeo in Big Spring. The 2023-24 regular season concludes with the Tarleton Stampede, April 18-20 in Stephenville.
A founding member of The Texas A&M System, Tarleton State University is breaking records — in enrollment, research, scholarship, athletics, philanthropy and engagement — while transforming the lives of approximately 18,000 students in Stephenville, Fort Worth, Waco, Bryan and online. For 125 years, Tarleton State has been committed to accessible higher education opportunities for all while helping students grow academically, socially and professionally through programs that emphasize real world learning and address regional, state and national needs.