Women Take Their Fifth Rodeo Title

April 25, 2006

FORT HAYS, Kan. – The Southwestern Oklahoma State women’s rodeo team has now matched its successful male counterparts by winning its fifth rodeo of the season. The Bulldogs collected 340 points to take home the women’s team title at the Fort Hays State Rodeo, finishing just ahead of second-place Oklahoma Panhandle (270) and Southeastern Oklahoma (240).

The win all but wrapped up the Central Plains regional title for the SWOSU women who are likely to advance as a team to the Collegiate National Finals rodeo later this summer.  SWOSU (2,650 points) has a 625-point lead over second-place SOSU (2,025) with only one more rodeo remaining.

SWOSU’s other team titles came at Oklahoma Panhandle, Garden City, Northeastern A&M and their own SWOSU rodeo.

SWOSU again got the bulk of its points from Sarah Ellingson who continued her dominance in the barrel racing event. She won both the short round, long round and won the overall average with a two-ride combined time of 33.07 seconds. Her margin of victory was nearly two seconds better than that of the second-place competitor.

Ellingson, a junior from Kellyville, is ranked as the No. 1 collegiate barrel racer in the nation and has won events at SWOSU, Garden City, Kansas State and Northeastern A&M to go with her most recent win at Fort Hays.

SWOSU also got heavy points at Fort Hays from Audra Hays who ended up winning the goat tying competition with two combined attempts for a total of 17.2 seconds. Hays, a Weatherford senior, has two other top 10 finishes in the goat tying where she finished sixth at SWOSU and fourth at Northeastern A&M.

The final rodeo for the SWOSU women will begin Thursday, April 27 at Southeastern Oklahoma State University.