Gonzalez Stays Hot with 2nd Team Roping Title in 3 Rodeos

Lyvan Gonzalez was crowned the team roping champion for the second time in three rodeos at the WT A&M Rodeo in Hereford, Texas on Saturday, April 18.

The men's team sent 11 to the Short Round this week at Spicer Gripp Arena. 

Lyvan Gonzalez tied for first place in the Long Round with his teammate Teagan Taylor-Roukema recording a 6.6 second run to earn himself 55 points. Gonzalez dominated the Short Round with an 8.7 second run which won him 60 points. He was first in the average for another 60 points and ended the rodeo with 175 points. Gonzalez moves to the No. 4 spot in the Caprock Region header standings with 415 points. He is 20 points out of the coveted third place automatic qualifying spot for the College National Finals Rodeo.     

"Lyvan got himself up to No. 4 in the region and is only 20 points out of third," Coach Kinley said. "So, it's far from over and he has to win this coming weekend, but he's got momentum and they'll do what they need to do. He's been roping really well and really smart. Lyvan had a rough fall but now he's roping better than I've ever seen." 

Teagan Taylor-Roukema is headed to Casper to compete in the team roping at the College National Finals Rodeo. The sophomore locked up the Caprock Region title with his performance this week. 

Roukema tied for first place in the Long Round with teammate Lyvan Gonzalez after registering a 6.6 second run. He earned 55 points in the Long Round. He was fifth in the Short Round with a 14.9 second run to earn 20 points and was third in the average for another 40 points. Roukema finished the rodeo with 115 points and is first place in the heeler standings of the team roping with 735 points. He is 235 points clear of second place headed into the last rodeo of the year.   

"Teagan has been a machine and they've done really well," Coach Kinley said. "I'm really proud of him and happy for him that he's won the region already! We're looking forward to a shot at the national title."

Jestin Jacklin finished third in the bull riding for the Long Round with a score of 85. He earned 40 points for the performance. The freshman was a no score in the short go but still finished second in average for an additional 40 points. He totaled 80 points overall this weekend. Jacklin is 10th in the Caprock Region bull rider standings with 190 points.

Treyden Gonzales was third in the team roping in the Long Round with a 7.0 run. He earned 40 points with the performance. Gonzales was a 15.1 in the Short Round for 10 more points and placed fourth in the average for an additional 30 points. His WT A&M total was 80 points. 

The men's team of Lyvan Gonzalez, Teagan Taylor-Roukema, Jestin Jacklin, and Treyden Gonzales scored 450 points to finish in second place at the WT A&M Rodeo. 

"It's been fun to be giving ourselves a chance at the team titles," Coach Kinley said. "Hopefully we can walk away with one this weekend."

Bull rider Lucas Ozirney was on spot behind his teammate Jacklin in fourth place with a score of 83 to pick up 30 points. He was a no score in the short go and finished with 30 more points after placing fourth in the average. Ozirney is seventh in the Caprock Region bull rider standings with 280 points. 

"Jestin and Lucas did such a good job in the Long Round," Coach Kinley said. "Lucas started us off with a great ride and then Jestin answered the call and made another one. It was pretty fun to watch. They'll be ready to do it again this weekend."

Jace Beierbach made it back to the Short Round for the second straight week in the steer wrestling. The freshman finished fifth in the Long Round with a time of 8.5 seconds which earned him 20 points. He was fourth in the Short Round recording a 12.1 second run to grab an additional 30 points. Beierbach added 20 points in the average to finish with 70 points total for the rodeo.  

"Jace has been bulldogging really well," Coach Kinley said. "He's been really gritty and making good use of his draws. It's been a good shot of confidence for him for sure."

Gunnar Tipton for the second week in a row had a great performance in the Long Round of the tie down roping. Tipton finished second with a time of 9.0 earning 50 points. He was a no time in the Short Round and finished sixth in the average to notch 10 additional points. Tipton is ninth in the Caprock Region tie down roping standings with 295 points. 

"Gunnar's been putting some great runs together," Coach Kinley said. "His Short Round calf got up but he's found a new level of confidence in himself that he'll keep rolling with."

Cord Smith and Louk Thomas were the 10th team in the Long Round of the team roping with a 12.2 second run. The pair were fourth in the Short Round with a time of 14.8 to earn 30 points and finished sixth in the average for an additional 10 points.  

Cash Yule and Kelson McCuaig made the team roping short go after an eighth-place finish of 11.8 seconds. They were a no time in the Short Round. 

"Treyden roped two really good steers this weekend," Coach Kinley said. "He's been roping really well. It was a tough pen of steers, and we were glad to get Cord and Louk and Cash and Kelson in there as well. They all stepped up filled the Short Round up."

The T-Birds have one rodeo remaining in the regular season as the team looks to solidify some spots with a top-3 finish in the Caprock Region. The automatic qualifiers will compete at the National Finals Rodeo in Casper, Wyoming starting Monday, June 15.  

The Thunderbirds are in fifth place in the men's team standings of the Caprock Region with 2,945 points.

"The back-to-back rodeos seem to be good for us," NMJC men's rodeo head coach Stewy Kinley said. "Rodeo is an interesting sport. You get one shot in your event which takes anywhere from 2-10 seconds and then either get to do it again in the Short Round or you go home and get ready for the next one. I think back-to-back weekends eliminates that down time and helps everyone as a whole."

NMJC will head to the final rodeo of the year at the SPC Rodeo in Levelland, Texas April 23-25.