By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
MURRAY, Ky. – For the fourth time in six fall rodeos, the University of Tennessee at Martin men’s squad finished as runner-up as both Skyhawk teams completed their fall schedules this weekend at Murray State.
The UT Martin cowboys accrued 560 points, ranking only behind Missouri Valley College (1,060) in the men’s standings. Meanwhile, the Skyhawk cowgirls came away with 90 points to place sixth in the women’s standings.
In bareback riding, Stetson Bierman paced a trio of UT Martin representatives who garnered points. Bierman split third with 75 points in the opening round, finished fourth with 148 points in average and placed fifth with a 73 in the short go. Weston Hamilton produced identical 70’s in both the first and short rounds, placing fifth and splitting sixth, respectively. His 140 average was good enough to split fifth. UT Martin’s third scorer was Blake Leamon as his 69 in the opening round placed sixth and his 70 in the short go split sixth.
Will McCraw led the Skyhawks in calf roping, tallying a time of 10.4 seconds in the short go (placing second) before a 23.3 average ranked fifth in the field. Cole Harmon finished with an 11.6 in the first go, which split fifth.
UT Martin received a remarkable performance out of Jack Smithson in saddle bronc riding. His 78 in the short go was the top score in the field while his 145 average ranked as the second most points. He posted a 67 to begin his weekend, which ranked fifth in the opening round.
A pair of Skyhawk cowboys earned points in the steer wrestling event. Jesse Keysaer’s 4.3 in the short round was the second-best time while his 9.3 average and 5.0 first-round go ranked third and fourth, respectively. Logan Neal additionally secured points as his 5.4 seconds in the first round split fifth.
In goat tying, Emma Kate Wilder pieced together the best first-round performance in the field as her time of 7.3 seconds set the standard. Her 15.5 average would also generate points as that tally ranked sixth. Jasmin Bakri collected points across the board as she split fourth in average (15.4), split fourth in the short go (7.7) and placed fifth in the opening round (7.7).
A plethora of UT Martin representatives notched points in team roping as five combined Skyhawks left the weekend with points. Keysaer and Harmon teamed up to place fifth in both average (20.1) and in the short round (12.2). Another all-UT Martin tandem of McCraw and Cole Walker recorded a 6.2 in the opening go, which was the fourth-best score in the event. Grace Bryant joined forces with West Alabama’s Blayne Saine, finishing sixth in average (23.1) and sixth in the second round (15.2).
The Skyhawks will step away from official competition for nearly four months as UT Martin begins its five-rodeo spring slate on March 17-19 at East Mississippi Community College.
Graphic Courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information