TRAPPER STAMPEDE: NORTHWEST COLLEGE FINISHES THIRD IN HOME RODEO

BY CARSON FIELD TRIBUNE SPORTS WRITER
Courtesy of the Powell Tribune
powelltribune.mycapture.com

Northwest College hosted its annual Trapper Stampede Rodeo over the weekend, competing against six other schools in the Big Sky region.

NWC's men's team tallied 195 points on Friday, finishing third, and Austin Herrera was the Trappers' top performer. A sophomore from Soap Lake, Washington, Herrera won the bull riding competition with a score of 84.

On day two, the Trappers logged 157 points, once again putting them in third place in the men's side. The NWC women also finished third with 116.5 points.

Northwest College had two second-place finishers on Saturday: Hailey Davis posted a time of 3.0 seconds in breakaway roping — just 0.1 seconds out of first place — and Cody Weeks' score of 75 in the saddle bronc was just one point off the leader in that event. Bruin Bradshaw also placed in the bareback riding with a score of 59.

Montana State won the overall crown handily on both days.

The home event, held at the Cody Stampede Rodeo grounds, marked the Trappers' first event of the 2020 season, and head coach Del Nose hopes this debut serves as a learning experience for his young squad.

"We're rebuilding, and all this is like a stepping stone for getting our kids fine-tuned to be competitive," Nose said. "We had quite a few freshmen and injuries, so we're looking for better performances in the next few weeks."

Though it wasn't the outcome Nose hoped for, it was an official event — something that didn't seem likely too long ago because of COVID-19. Giving his athletes a chance to compete in front of a live audience was exciting for Nose.

"We were thrilled to death," Nose said. "The turnout was great for what we were up against. The students were in compliance, and we had a lot of respect from the parents and spectators with social distancing."

This weekend, NWC will compete in the University of Montana Western Rodeo in Dillon, Montana. There, Nose hopes to see various aspects of his team improve.

"Our roughstock needs work, and we're working on that in practice," Nose said. "Just getting our riders fine tuned, and hopefully we can do better in Dillon."