Rodeo Teams Take First & Second Place at West Alabama
Livingston, Ala., (Sept. 29, 2024)- The Missouri Valley College rodeo teams continued their fall seasons with the West Alabama rodeo in Livingston, Ala., over the weekend. Three Vikings finished first in their respective event averages, while the men's team captured first overall, and the women's team placed second.
On the men's side, the bareback riding event featured five of the top six spots in the average won by Viking cowboys. Junior Bryce Eck (Redfield, Kan.) placed first with a 154 in the average. He placed fourth in the first go-round with a 74, and won the second go-round with the highest score of the weekend, a ride of 80. Eck earned 150 total points. Junior Kooper Heimburg (San Tan Valley, Ariz.) was second in the average with a 153, finishing with scores of 77 and 76, to collect 135 points. Both Sophomore Jason Wilson (Pownal, Vt.) and Senior Drew Lind (Weyauwega, Wisc.) tied for third in the average with a 152. Wilson earned 105 points and Lind earned 100 points. Also, Junior Hayden Leavell (Ozark, Mo.) was sixth in the average with a 134 to earn 30 points.
Also for the men's team, Freshman Treg Huver (Nashville, Mich.) won the second go-round of saddle bronc riding, with the highest score of the weekend, posting a 77 to earn 60 points. Sophomore Walker McAbee (Woodruff, S.C.) was third in the second go-round of the event with a 56 and earned 40 points. Leavell also competed in steer wrestling, and placed fifth in the average with a 4.9. He won the first go-round with a 4.9 and earned 75 points.
The women's team was led by a pair of average winners. Sophomore Kalyani Das (Las Cruces, N.M.) led in barrel racing, winning both go-rounds and placing first in the average. Das posted times of 15.92 and 16.08 to finish with a 32.0 and earn 180 points. Also, Freshman Kate Brisbane (Kearney, Mo.) tied for first in the goat tying average with a 19.1. Brisbane finished with a 9.9 to finish sixth in the first go-round, then won the second go-round with a 9.2. Brisbane earned 125 points. Also, Freshman Codie Vaughn (Searcy, Ark.) finished fourth in the goat tying average with a 19.9 to earn 95 points, Sophomore Dally Orman (Blakesburg, Iowa) was fifth in the barrel racing average with a 33.11 to earn 40 points and Freshman Ruby Espey (Lone Jack, Mo.) was sixth in the breakaway roping average with a 2.5 to earn 50 points.
The men's rodeo team finished first overall in the standings with a total of 555. West Alabama followed in second with a 550 total. The women's team was second in the standings with a 260 total, trailing West Alabama which finished with a 280.
Up next, the rodeo teams travel to Monticello, Ark., for the Arkansas-Monticello rodeo, Oct. 3-5.
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Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.