James Gililland Wins Team Roping at Tarleton State
University Rodeo

STEPHENVILLE, TX - James Gililland (So., Tularosa, NM/Tularosa HS) of Eastern New Mexico University combined with Josh Morris of West Texas A&M University to win team roping at the Tarleton State University Rodeo, held in Stephenville, Texas, April 24-26. With the win, Gililland scored all 40 of Eastern’s points, as the Greyhounds finished ninth in the team standings. Morris helped WTAMU take the overall men’s title with 280 team points.

Gililland’s victory helped him earn a spot at the Conference Finals Rodeo in Hobbs, N.M., May 29-30. He will be joined at the Conference Finals by six other Greyhounds and one Zia.

At TSU, Gililland qualified for the short go in team roping with two different headers, but won with Morris. They clocked in at 5.6 seconds in the long go, and their time of 4.5 seconds in the short go was the fastest time during the event. They finished with a combined score of 10.1 seconds to win by 0.4 seconds over Shawn Kalina of South Plains College and J.W. Borrego of Mesalands Community College.

Gililland also qualified for the short go with John Brunson also of West Texas A&M. They completed the long go in 5.5 seconds. They also were timed at 5.5 seconds in the short go, but received a five second penalty. Their official time of 10.5 seconds in the short go gave them an overall time of 16.0 seconds and a fifth place finish.

Dale Vickrey (So., Carlsbad, NM/Carlsbad HS) finished second in the overall average of bull riding. Shannon Miller (Jr., Alamogordo, NM/New Mexico JC) advanced to the short go in bareback riding, and Jeff Cavey (Sr., Douglas, AZ/Odessa College) made an appearance in the short go of saddle bronc riding.

Vickrey reached the short go after receiving a 66 on his first eight-second ride. He was one of only two riders who finished the second run. He earned 79 points and finished with an overall score of 145 points to take second place.

Ty Scoggins of Tarleton State also completed his ride in the short go. He scored a 74 in the first round and a 76 in the finals to take first place with a combined total of 150 points.

In bareback riding, Miller recorded a 68 on his first ride and a 72 on his final ride to earn a cumulative score of 140 points. He placed seventh in the event. Will Lowe of Vernon College won bareback riding by scoring 157 points (80-77).

Cavey made his second consecutive appearance in the short go of saddle bronc riding. He won saddle bronc at Frank Phillips College on Apr. 19 after scoring a 71 in the long go and a 72 in the short go for a total of 143 points.

At the TSU Rodeo, Cavey scored a 75 on his first ride, but was unable to complete his ride in the short go, and finished seventh overall. Bradley Harter of Tarleton State won saddle bronc riding with an 81 in the long go and an 85 in the short go for 166 total points.

Monty Eakin of West Texas A&M took first place in calf roping after timing in at 9.1 seconds in the long round, then running the fastest time in the short go at 7.8 seconds. He earned an overall time of 16.9 seconds.

Alesha Tozer (Sr., Cortez, CO/Cortez HS) was the only Zia to make the short go at TSU. She qualified in goat tying, after clocking in at 8.4 seconds on her first run. In the short go, she completed the round in 9.2 seconds to give her a total time of 17.6 seconds and a ninth place finish. Skye Holman of Tarleton State claimed first place in goat tying after she ran an 8.0 on her first ride and a 7.4 in the short go for a total of 15.4 seconds. Only five-tenths of a second separated first place from fourth place.

Laura Hyde of Vernon College won barrel racing by running a 15.42 in the long go and a 15.08 in the short go for a total of 30.50 seconds. Three cowgirls tied for first in break-away roping, as Randus London (3.2-3.1) and Erin Anglin (3.1-3.2) from Western Texas College and Tibba Smith (2.7-3.6) of Tarleton State each finished with a combined time of 6.3 seconds.

West Texas A&M’s first place score of 280 points in the men’ team standings was followed by Tarleton State at 247 1/3 points. Third place went to Vernon College with 180 points, while Western Texas College claimed fourth place at 155 points and Odessa College was fifth with 145 points. Frank Phillips finished in sixth place with 87 1/2 points, followed by South Plains in seventh place with 57 1/2 points.

Howard College took eighth place with 45 points and ENMU was ninth with 40 points. Sul Ross State University had 35 points to finish 10th, Weatherford College earned 30 points for 11th, Mesalands Community College had 27 1/2 points for 12th and Texas Tech University achieved 15 points for 13th. No other teams scored.

In the women’s team standings, Vernon took first place with 160 points, while Tarleton State was close behind, with 155 points in second place. Odessa placed third with 110 points. Western Texas College was fourth with 70 points, and was followed by Texas Tech with 65 points. Frank Phillips was sixth with 40 points and West Texas A&M finished seventh with 10 points. The remaining teams did not score.

Eastern’s eight team members who have qualified for the Conference Finals Rodeo have their greatest representation in team roping. Gililland will partner with Shawn Kalina of South Plains, while Tabor Smith (Sr., Elida, NM/Elida HS) will ride with Matt Cramblet of South Plains and J.D. Kibbe (Sr., Des Moines, NM/Des Moines HS) will be paired with Ryan O’Donnell of Howard College. Cavey will represent ENMU in saddle bronc riding, and Chance Parsons (Fr., Monte Vista, CO/Mesalands Community College) will compete for the Greyhounds in steer wrestling. The men’s team also will include bull riders Vickrey and Dusty Higgins (So., Roswell, NM/New Mexico JC).

Kendra Jones (Jr., Sonora, TX/Odessa College) will be the only member of the ENMU women’s team competing at the Conference Finals. She will represent the Zias in goat tying.

The Greyhounds and Zias concluded the regular season at TSU. Even so, the will be busy over the next several weeks in preparation for the Conference Finals Rodeo. The rodeo season will come to a close at the College National Finals Rodeo, set for June 8-15 in Casper, Wyo.