Path to Victory: Team USA Eagles Make Every Ride Count en Route to Global Cup Title

By: Justin Felisko

ARLINGTON, Texas – The 2020 WinStar World Casino and Resort Global Cup USA, presented by Monster Energy, came down to the wire on Championship Sunday at AT&T Stadium as Team Australia attempted to storm a last-minute comeback on American soil.

However, Cole Melancon and Matt Triplett made sure to prevent the Australians from pulling off the upset at the fourth Global Cup, and the duo helped the Team USA Eagles win their second Global Cup title in four tries.

Here is a look back at all six of the Team USA Eagles’ qualified rides this weekend, and how they all played a pivotal role in the Americans’ victory.

COLE MELANCON PUSHES EAGLES INTO THE LEAD FOR GOOD WITH 88.25 POINTS ON MONKEY

 
Confidence was never going to be an issue for Cole Melancon at the Global Cup. From the moment he was named to the original Team USA squad in Edmonton in 2017, Melancon always believed he could be not just a role-player, but a difference-maker for the Americans.

Therefore, Melancon, who earned a last-second spot on the Eagles courtesy of his Iron Cowboy victory eight days earlier, was not fazed one bit Sunday once Nathan Burtenshaw lifted Team Australia into the lead for the second time that day with an 87-point effort on Quasimodo in the second to last section of Round 3.

Melancon remained composed when fellow Eagle Boudreaux Campbell bucked off Honky Tonk Flame in 7.6 seconds minutes after Burtenshaw’s ride.

The Aussies were feeling confident and ready to pull off the upset, but Melancon refused to let them suck the energy out of AT&T Stadium and the Eagles.

The man who gave the Eagles their first ride of the event 24 hours earlier made sure to put the Eagles on his shoulders with the team’s back against the wall. Melancon would go on to ride Monkey for 88.25 points on the final ride attempt of Round 3, pushing the Eagles back on top with only two ride attempts remaining for each team.

MELANCON: “Man, I was just trying to block everything out, and it is hard to do. I knew the pressure was on me and the stakes were high. I knew I had to show up in a big way. I knew I had a great bull. I knew if I could just make those first few rounds on him that it would be piece of cake. It was still tough. He kind of threw a couple of dirty things at me at the end. It is just one of those them deals that when you crawl into that chute, it don’t matter what the stakes are. Everything kind of just leaves. You get in that state of mind. That bull riding mind. You aren’t worried about anything at that moment.”

MATT TRIPLETT SPARKS EAGLES TO LFIE WITH 88.75 POINTS ON LA GRANDE

 
The Americans began Championship Sunday atop the event leaderboard, but things did not start off nearly as well as the red, white and blue would have liked.

Dark Alley first bucked off team captain and two-time World Champion Jess Lockwood in 3.66 seconds. Next, 2012 PRCA champion Cody Teel was no match for Sosa’s Alley Cat as the bovine athlete dismantled the Texas cowboy in 2.3 seconds.

Team USA was beginning to reel, while Australia had begun its surge. The Aussies had stormed the Eagles’ nest by beginning Sunday with three consecutive rides, capped off by Troy Wilkinson’s 84.75-point ride on Night Sweats to push Australia into the lead.

That was until Matt Triplett made sure the Eagles got back on track by notching the first ride of the day for Team USA just minutes after Wilkinson’s effort.

TRIPLETT: “This is huge. We let a couple slip by us, but just like yesterday, we can’t let it get us down. We have to keep working and win this thing. I don’t like losing. Nobody on our team likes losing. If we do our part, we are the best bull riders in the world.”

LOCKWOOD PUTS EAGLES ON HIS BACK ON NIGHT 1; 90.25 POINTS ON GRAND THEFT AND 88.5 POINTS ON RED DAWN

 
Two-time World Champion Jess Lockwood knew he had to step up and lead Team USA if the Eagles were going to have any chance at the 2020 Global Cup, and he dug deep on Saturday night to help contribute to the Eagles’ win.

Lockwood first made sure the Eagles stayed right on the heels of then-event leader Team Canada by ending Round 1 with an emphatic 90.25 points on Grand Theft. Lockwood was mobbed on the arena floor by his teammates, and the Eagles headed into the Bonus Round only 1.5 points behind Canada.

With all the momentum on his side, Lockwood then had to still dig deep when he received a re-ride during his first Bonus Round attempt against Outlaw. Lockwood had only seven minutes to catch his breath and attempt to ride Red Dawn – a bull that had previously bucked him off on two different occasions.

The third time was the charm.

The No. 3-ranked rider in the world rode Red Dawn for 88.5 points to help the Eagles end night one sitting atop the event leaderboard.

Head coach Justin McBride jumped off the bucking chutes as Lockwood raised his arms and stared at his teammates with a confident glare.

The four-time Eagles coach pulled Lockwood into a bear hug and told the 22-year-old that these were the moments he was expecting when he named him his team captain.

McBride later joked, “I think I may have almost kissed him right there.”

LOCKWOOD: “It is different being on a team. This is the closest we get to feel like a U.S. army soldier defending our home country, fighting for lives and stuff, which we are obviously not doing. We are just trying to do the Team Eagles name good. This is the closest thing we will ever feel. When you ride, you just did something for your country. It is different kind of feeling.”

TEEL GETS KNOCKED OUT AFTER 82-POINT RIDE ON PEEP SHOW

2012 PRCA champion Cody Teel sacrificed his body for his team on Saturday night when he hung on to his bull rope with every last remaining ounce of strength to get a score on Peep Show. It was a gritty and unheralded 82 points, and the effort resulted in a concussion for Teel, but those 82 points proved to be a difference maker for the Eagles.

TEEL: “I dang sure wanted to show up and be ready to contribute so I am excited that it all worked out. Justin (McBride) had us all fired up, ready to climb on a grizzly bear. We were ready to do whatever he says and whatever he wanted.”

MELANCON CALMS THE WATERS FOR TEAM USA ON NIGHT ONE WITH 86 POINTS ON TOP DOWN

 
The last three additions to the Eagles squad were tasked with starting things on Saturday night, and with that came added attention on the Eagles’ youngsters.

Cole Melancon was not a fan of the question marks surrounding the youth on the Eagles team, and he had all the confidence in teammates such as Boudreaux Campbell and Daylon Swearingen having to start things off for Team USA.

However, Campbell (6.43 seconds on Big Black Cat) and Swearingen (6.31 seconds on Wicked Dreams) were unable to get the Eagles on the scoreboard with the team’s first two outs in Round 1.

Melancon made sure to swing the momentum back into the Eagles’ favor by riding Top Down for 86 points, breaking the ice for Team USA.

MELANCON: “All the guys are already fired up. Boudreaux gave it his all, and Daylon sure gave it everything he had. That sucker was dirty. We were really hoping for those guys to set the pace right, but they didn’t disappoint us. They tried their heart out, and they tried until their head hit the ground to come out and get it started. I just had to step up and I had to make it happen. I had to get the momentum back.”

Follow Justin Felisko on Twitter @jfelisko

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