Men Finish Fourth at Ft. Scot

March 16, 2006

Ft Scott, KS - Southwestern Oklahoma State’s unprecedented run through the 2005-06 men’s rodeo season ended Sunday with a fourth-place finish at the Ft. Scott Rodeo. The finish was the first time in six rodeos that the Bulldogs had not won the overall team title.

Still, the Bulldogs, who are ranked No. 7 in the nation, hold a sizeable advantage in the Central Plains regional standings with 3,207 points compared to second-place Ft. Scott with 2,199. A total of four rodeos remain for this season.

Ft. Scott won its own rodeo with 753 points followed by Northwestern Oklahoma in second with 650 points. Oklahoma Panhandle State finished third with 433 points while SWOSU was fourth with 390 points.

SWOSU’s Bandy Murphy had some sizzle removed from his season-long hot streak. Murphy, who is ranked as the No. 2 All-Around Cowboy in the nation, scored points in only one event – saddle bronc riding. He finished fourth in the short round which earned him a sixth-place finish in the saddle bronc average.

SWOSU’s Steven Smith again finished among the top bareback riders in the event with third-place finish in the short round and a fourth-place effort in the long round. The two finishes allowed him to take home third place in the average.

Paul Gavin and Daniel Gardner each scored points in the bull riding competition. Gavin was fifth in the long round, second in the short round and finished second in the average. Gardner tied for third in the long round which ended up earning him a fifth-place tie in the average.

The Bulldogs had five different individuals on three different team roping pairs score. Tanner Houston and Jesse Kulczycki finished second in the short round and earned second in the average. Tony Sauter and Bobby Martin finished sixth in the short round and sixth in the average. Aaron Allen teamed with Clayton Krieger of Bacone for a fifth-place effort in the long round.

SWOSU’s next rodeo begins Thursday, March 30 at Oklahoma Panhandle State.