Rodeo Teams Finish 1st & 2nd, Ken Mason Named Coach of the Year
Marshall, Mo. (May 2, 2023)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's rodeo teams finished their regular seasons over the weekend at the Northwest Mississippi rodeo, and the final standings of the Ozark Region have been released. The men's team captured a seventh-straight Ozark Region title, and the women's team was reserve champion. Head Coach Ken Mason was named the Ozark Region Coach of the Year.
The men's team won its seventh-straight Ozark Region championship after finishing the regular season with 7,585 total points from the 10 rodeos contested. Second place was Tennessee-Martin with 5,630 points. This is Ozark Region title No. 13 for the program.
Leading the men's team was Junior Ty Pope (Waverly, Kan.), who was first overall in the all-around standings with 2,355 points earned. He finished second in both the saddle bronc riding, and bareback riding standings this season. Pope earned 1,140 points in saddle bronc, and 1,215 points in bareback. Junior Colton Eck (Redfield, Kan.) was third in the all-around standings, with 1,365 points. He was fourth in both the saddle bronc and bareback riding standings, with 550 points and 795 points in the two events respectively.
The Viking cowboys dominated the bareback riding standings, which was won this season by Freshman Kooper Heimburg (San Tan Valley, Ariz.). He finished with 1,430 points earned on the season. Pope was second, followed by Senior Nick Pelke (Mondovi, Wis.) in third with 925 points, Eck was fourth and Junior Grant Worthington (Helper, Kan.) was fifth with 670 points.
In saddle bronc riding, Pope led with his second place finish, followed by Junior Samuel Freeman (Cadiz, Ky.) in third with 825 points, Eck in fourth and Senior Garrett Golliher (Camdenton, Mo.) was fifth with 170 points. The other top performers from the team in other event standings included Freshman Chase Applewhite (Heber Springs, Ark.) at third overall in steer wrestling, earning 440 points, and Senior Kolten Achenbach (Prairie du Chien, Wis.) finishing seventh in bull riding with 170 points.
The Viking women's team finished as the reserve Ozark Region champion for the third-straight season, earning 2,179.5 total points. West Alabama was the region champion with 3,755 points, and Tennessee-Martin was third with 2,027 points.
The Viking cowgirls took three of the top four spots in the final goat tying standings. Senior Taylor Mason (Marshall, Mo.) was second overall in the event, earning 630 points on the season. Junior Betsy Roemer (Jonesboro, Ark.) followed in third with 607.5 points and Senior Lakin Cunningham (Lewisburg, Kan.) was fourth with 549.5 points earned on season. The top performer in barrel racing this season was Junior Sadie Biggs (Harrison, Ark.) in seventh with 265 points, and Senior Kelci Bends (Ashland, Mont.) was the top performer from the team in breakaway roping at ninth with 210 points.
Head Coach Ken Mason was named the Ozark Region Coach of the Year for the 2022-23 season, after leading the men's team to the championship, and the women's team to the reserve championship. In the National standings, the men's team is second overall, and the women's team is No. 20.
With both Viking rodeo programs finishing in the top two in the Ozark Region, the pair will compete as teams at the 2023 College National Finals Rodeo in Casper, Wyo. The CNFR runs from June 11-17 at the Ford Wyoming Center.
Ozark Region Standings-Click Here
About Missouri Valley College
Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 40 academic programs, study abroad program, honors program, extracurricular activities, and 13 sports. The most popular majors include education and business, and some new majors are ag-business, nursing, graphic design, and health information systems (associate degree). Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.