The final fall rodeo might not have gone as well as the Northwest College team had hoped, but the Trappers are doing well in the Big Sky Region halfway through the rodeo-year.

Competition was tight for the mens’ teams at University of Montana Western last weekend with Northwest College in fifth place, just 170 points shy of ranking first. The women’s team also ranked fifth with 135 points, roughly 500 points behind first.

“We didn’t have as good of a rodeo as we wanted to have,” said head rodeo coach Del Nose. “It was a tight rodeo; schools that hadn’t been doing good stepped up to the plate.”

Trapper freshman team roper, steer wrestler and calf roper Bubba Boots was top in the All Around with 205 points.

Boots placed second in the steer wrestling with a 10.7 on the average, just slightly ahead of fellow Trapper Justin Honken who ranked third with 10.8.

“We have been practicing really hard and it was just my week to get things right,” Boots said. “At first, I struggled a bit this season; but it was nice to end on a high note and get things rolling.”

Boots’ first round in the steer wrestling had a 4-second time, which came in handy in the second round.

“I drew good and my horse scored good and everything worked out good for me and I got him thrown pretty fast,” Boots said.

The Trappers had three cowboys place in the tie down roping with Lane Lahaye leading the group in third with 23.1. Boots was close behind in fourth with 30.1 and William Griffel tied for seventh with 10.4.

The first round of roping went well with a 9-second time, Boots said.

“But the second one, I roped him a little deep and wasn’t quite as fast,” Boots said.

Goat tying’s competition was stiff with Trapper sophomore Rachel Kerr missing the top spot by just 1.6 seconds. Kerr placed fourth with 18.6.

It was anyone’s game in the breakaway roping, but sophomore Marlee Mussmann managed to tie for fifth place with a 3.0.

“It was still a good rodeo and we are still pretty close,” Nose said.

Regional standings

Even though NWC is just a two-year college, the Trappers have a solid standing in third place for the Big Sky Region with 1,987.5 points. Montana State University is at the top with 2,622 followed by University of Montana Western with 2,515.5.

University of Montana is in fourth with 887, less than half as many points as NWC.

On the women’s side, the Trapper ladies are sitting in seventh place with 216 points, not too far behind Dawson Community College’s 254.

“We have had a good first half — some ups and downs — but all in all, when the dust settles, we are right in there, closer than we have been in a long time,” Nose said. “I’m pretty happy with the boys’ team, but the girls’ team needs to settle down and have fun and rodeo. They had a bit of rodeo this weekend, so maybe we are on the right track.”

So far, it looks likely the entire NWC men’s team will go to the College National Finals Rodeo in the summer, Nose said.

Lahaye is leading the region for the men’s All Around with 870 points, well ahead of MTSU’s Will Powell who has 730.

Lahaye’s lead in the All Around is largely thanks to the incredible lead he and Shawn Bird have in the team roping event.

“Bird is coming around and is many points ahead of second place,” Nose said. The Trapper duo are top in the region with 403 points, more than double the second place team’s score from University of Montana Western.

Freshmen Griffel and Robert Magpie are currently tied with a team from Montana State University for 15th in team roping with 107.

The Trappers dominate the bull riding event with four out of the region’s top 10 hailing from the NWC team. Scores vary from 510 on down to 40, but the Trappers are solidly in the middle for now.

Casey Fredericks is fourth with 150, Tyler Sterner is fifth with 135, Garrett Remington is sixth with 110 and Taylor Roberts is eighth with 85.

Scores are pretty spread out for the Big Sky’s top eight bareback riders, ranging from 731-112. Trapper sophomore Jesse Nelson is right in the middle of it all in fourth place with 302. Robert Cobler is just a few points away from taking a step up the ladder, currently in seventh with 116.5 — less than 10 points away from claiming sixth.

In the tie down roping, Lahaye is near the top with 236 points for third place, about 100 points shy of taking the top spot. Boots is currently ranked 15th with 75, but he’s currently second in the region for steer wrestling with 306 points.

Lahaye is sitting in sixth for steer wrestling with 231 points and Honken is ninth with 165.

Freshman Sierra Lyons is the only Trapper cowgirl ranked in the barrel racing with 59.5 for 12th place.

“(Lyons) has really come on, I wasn’t surprised actually — she stepped up to the plate,” Nose said. “She would have done better, but her horse fell in the short round, so she had some bad luck there.”

Meanwhile, Marlee Mussmann is sitting in 15th for the breakaway roping with 73.

Two Trapper cowgirls are ranked in the goat tying event; Rachel Kerr in 12th with 75 and Lyons in 15th with 47.

The Trappers will practice a couple of days a week after midterms, then they will resume in February in preparation for the first spring rodeo in Bozeman in early April. 

Some of the team will keep their skills sharp at an upcoming series of rodeos in Laurel, and Montana State is holding an invitational rodeo for the top 10 riders in each event, Nose said. 

The team suffered some injuries this fall. Shelby Mann is anticipated to return this spring once her hand completes healing. Wyatt Hallett also had an operation on his wrist for some snapped tendons, Nose said.

“We are fortunate the kids are strong, so I am looking for a good spring, really,” Nose said.