Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
In its first two weeks of competition, Mesalands Community College’s intercollegiate rodeo team has won a bareback riding championship and a tie down roping reserve championship.
On Sept. 15, Mesalands opened its 2017-18 season on a high-note at Diné College in Tsaile, Arizona, where Scotty Bevins from Amsterdam, New York clinched the bareback championship.
“Scotty did excellent,” said Matt Hughes, intercollegiate rodeo coach. “For Scotty to jump out there and not just win the bareback riding, but to dominate the event, was amazing.”
At the Diné College rodeo, Bevins took first place in all three rounds of the bareback riding event. He earned a total of 180 points for the Men’s Team and is now leading the region.
“I had a lot of fun at the last rodeo. I felt pretty confident; because I’ve worked hard and practices have been going well,” Bevins said. “For the rest of the season, I’m going to keep riding strong and taking
care of business. That’s what it takes to win.”
Last summer, Bevins represented the Mesalands at the 2017 College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) in Casper, Wyoming. He finished in the top 25.
Mesalands sophomore Zack Toberer from Mount Ulla, North Carolina, took second place in tie down roping, with a time of 22.9 seconds in the final round on Sept. 22, at Cochise College in Douglas, Arizona. The rodeo team finished in fourth place with 230 points, freshman Michael Lucero from Jemez Valley tied for seventh place in team roping (header), with Tanner Lyman from the University of Arizona (heeler). They had a time of 26.5 seconds in the final round.
Mesalands rodeo team competed last weekend at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces.
For the 2017-2018 season, the Mesalands rodeo team has student athletes competing for the college from all over the country, including Arizona, New York, Texas, and Oregon.
“We have a great team and the potential to be one of the top teams in the region,” Hughes said. “This year we have three to four returners and the rest are freshmen. We should do better next week after the freshmen get their first-time jitters out the way.”
Mesalands will host the 10th Annual Mesalands Fall Rodeo Oct. 13-14 at the Quay County Rodeo Arena in Tucumcari.