Bracket 5 Closes Out Preliminary Competition at San Antonio Rodeo
Montana’s Tyrell J. Smith won the third round of Bracket 5 at the San Antonio Rodeo on Monday. His 82-point effort on Calgary Stampede’s Sergeant Whitney gave him the round win and a chance to ride again in the Semifinals. San Antonio Rodeo photo by Greg Westfall.
SAN ANTONIO – Monday night’s competition was the final round for Bracket 5 and the final opportunity for contestants to earn enough money to advance to the Semifinals of the $1.7 million San Antonio Rodeo.
For several of them, round three wins was just the ticket they needed. In the team roping, it was Dustin Egusquiza from Mariana, Floriday and Kory Koontz, from Stephenville, Texas, that collected the $2,378 they needed to compete again in the AT&T Center. With Egusquiza heading and Koontz heeling, they stopped the clock in 4.0 seconds for the round win. It was the first check for them at this year’s rodeo.
Saddle bronc rider Tyrell J. Smith from San Coulee, Montana had the highest score Monday night at 82. Smith rode a horse named Sergeant Whitney from the Calgary Stampede bucking horse string. Smith has qualified for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo once, in 2012. Last year he finished 21st in the world standings. He has been through injuries and has had life changes since then. He is married, living healthy and ready to get back to Las Vegas to compete for rodeo’s championship in 2018.
The check for $2,378 is the only check that Smith has won here so far. He needs to add to that in the Semifinals to have a shot at Saturday night’s finals where the lion’s share of the prize money will be paid.
Blane Cox, a tie-down roper from Cameron, Texas, had won a check in the first round for a fourth-place finish. That $595 wasn’t enough to see him rope here again without adding to it. He had to win first or second on Monday. That is exactly what he did when he stopped the clock in 7.5 seconds. The first-place check of $2,378 was enough to get the current Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association world standings leader another shot.
Kelly Brunner from Millsap, Texas, has a big bay gelding that can fly around the barrels. When he has an error-free run he is hard to beat. Monday night’s barrel racing saw three times under 14-seconds and was the fastest of this year’s show. Brunner was at the top of the board with a 13.80. Brunner won this rodeo 18 years ago and was elated when she made a victory lap around the arena.
Twenty contestants in each event advanced to the Semifinals which start on Tuesday night. The contestants are broken into two groups of 10 and each group will compete twice. Their money will be added to money they have already earned to see who advances to Saturday night’s finals. The top five contestants in each event, based on total money after each of the two Semifinals, will be the ones that are riding for championships in the finals.
The following are results after the 15th performance of the San Antonio Stock Show Rodeo, the 13-time Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Large Indoor Rodeo of the Year.
Bracket 5, round 3, followed by Semifinals qualifiers –
Fifteenth Performance
Bareback Riding: 1, Jake Brown, Cleveland, Texas, 85 points on Calgary Stampede’s Weary Joke, $2,378. 2, JR Vezain, Cowley, Wyo., 84.5, $1,784. 3, Justin Miller, Billings, Mont., $1,189. 4, Steven Dent, Mullen, Neb., 81.5, $595. (Semifinals qualifiers) 1, Jake Brown, $4,756. 2, Miller, $3,567. 3, Dent, $2,973. 4, Luke Creasy, Hobbs, N.M., $2,378.
Steer Wrestling: 1, Rhett Kennedy, Chowchilla, Calif., 3.8 seconds, $2,378. 2, Scott Guenthner, Provost, Alberta, 3.9, $1,784. 3, (tie) Olin Hannum, Malad, Idaho; Cameron Morman, Glen Ullin, N.D.; Chason Floyd, Buffalo, S.D.; and Jon Ragatz, Beetwon, Wis., 4.0, $446 each. (Semifinals qualifiers) 1, Guenthner, $3,270. 2, Dirk Tavenner, Rigby, Idaho, $2,974. 3, Floyd, $2,824. 4, Bridger Chambers, Stevensville, Mont, $2,378.
Team Roping: 1, Dustin Equsquiza, Mariana, Fla., and Kory Koontz, Stephenville, Texas, 4.0 seconds, $2,378 each. 2, Clay Tryan, Billings, Mont., Jade Corkill, Fallon, Nev., 4.5, $1,784. 3, Cody Snow, Los Olivos, Calif., and Wesley Thorp, Throckmorton, Texas, 5.9, $1,189. 4, Levi Simpson, Ponoka, ALberta, and Jeremy Buhler, Arrowwood, ALberta, 7.6, $595. (Semifinals qualifiers) 1, Snow and Thorp, $3,567. 2, (tie) Tryan and Corkill; and Nelson Wyatt, Clanton, Ala., and Trace Porter, Leesville, La., $2,973 each. 4, Egusquiza and Koontz, $2,378.
Saddle Bronc Riding: 1, Tyrell J. Smith, Sand Coulee, Mont., 82 points on Calgary Stampede’s Sergeant Whitney, $2,378. 2, Samuel Kelts, Millarville, Alberta, 79.5, $1,784. 3, Audy Reed, Spearman, Texas, 78.5, $1,189. 4, Andy Clarys, Riverton, Wyo., 77.5, $595. (Semifinals qualifiers) 1, Allen Boore, Axtell, Utah, $4,756. 2, (tie) Smith; Clarys; and Kelts, $2,378 each.
Tie-Down Roping: 1, Blane Cox, Cameron, Texas, 7.5 seconds, $2,378. 2, (tie) Braxton Laughlin, Sulphur, La., and Marty Yates, Stephenville, Texas, 7.7, $1,486 each. 4, Michael Otero, Krum, Texas, 8.3, $594.53. (Semifinals qualifiers) 1, Laughlin, $4,162. 2, Yates, $3,270. 3, (tie) Cox and Otero, $2,973 each.
Barrel Racing: 1, Kelly Bruner, Millsap, Texas, 13.80 seconds, $2,378. 2, Amberleigh Moore, Keizer, Ore., 13.95, $1,784. 3, Tiany Schuster, Krum, Texas, 13.97, $1,189. 4, Carman Pozzobon, Aldergrove, British Columbia, 14.11, $595 (Semifinals qualifiers) 1, Moore and Schuster, $3,567 each. 2, (tie) Kelly Bruner and Kelly Tovar, Rockdale, Texas, $2,378 each.
Bull Riding: 1, Tristan Mize, Bryan, Texas, 88.5 points on Andrews Rodeo’s Hard Knox, $2,378. 2, Parker Breding, Edgar, Mont., 84.5, $1,784. 3, Roscoe Jarboe, New Plymouth, Idaho, 81, $1,189. 4, Dustin Boquet, Bourg, La., 80, $595. (Semifinals qualifiers) 1, Brady portenier, Caldwell, Idaho, $3,864. 2, Boquet, $3,270. 3, (tie) Breding and Jarboe, $2,973 each.