By Ryne Rickman, UT Martin Sports Information Director
MAGNOLIA, Ark. – The University of Tennessee at Martin rodeo teams were back in action for the first time in three weeks over the weekend, taking part in the annual rodeo hosted by Southern Arkansas. The Skyhawk men’s squad collected 410 points for a third-place finish while the women’s team placed seventh with 50 points.
Sage Thomas performed very well in breakaway roping as the sophomore out of Muncie, Ind. won in average (8.1) and also had the best short go time (4.9) in the field. She additionally split third with a time of 3.2 seconds in the opening round.
On the men’s side, Jack Smithson dialed up second-place efforts in both average and in the first go in a tough saddle bronc riding field. The graduate from Springfield, Tenn. earned 63 points in each phase as there were only five scores out of 18 opportunities in the first and second rounds.
A pair of UT Martin cowboys came away with points in steer wrestling, led by Cole Walker. The Sparta, Tenn. native finished second in the opening round with a time of 5.6 seconds and later added a fifth-place effort in average. Also securing points for the Skyhawks was Clint Southworth, whose 5.9 seconds in the first go was the fifth-best time in the field.
Walker joined forces with Will McCraw for a successful run through the team roping event. The pair placed second in the short round (7.9), third in average (16.3) and fourth in the opening go (8.4).
The Skyhawk women’s squad picked up points from Allie Maxwell and Savannah Moran in barrel racing. Maxwell’s time of 13.62 seconds in the first round was second in the standings while Moran came in sixth in the short go after crossing the line in 14.15 seconds.
UT Martin closes out its fall schedule in two weeks when it makes the short trip to Murray State on Nov. 17-19.
Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information