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The Final Go-Round

It was championship Sunday as the 63rd annual Santa Maria Elks Rodeo wrapped up its four-day run at the Elks Unocal Events Center.
And the champions came out in force, as the enthusiastic crowd was treated to the top performances of the weekend in all of the rough stock events.
The Bareback Riders saved the best for last - Kyle Bowers won the champion's gold and silver buckle with an 81 point ride on Kattle Kall as the final rider out of the chutes.
“That's the best way to do it because then you know that no one's going to catch you. You don't have to worry about the next guy coming out and out-pointing you because there is no next guy,” said Bowers. “It feels great anytime that you have a good ride on a good horse. It's feels even better if it turns out to be a championship ride.”
Coming into Sunday's finalé, Jess Davis held the Bareback lead. Bowers ride pushed Davis (79 points) to second place, followed by Marv Hurley (78) and Trent Coates (77).
Luke Walker (74) and Ben Londo (73) - a Cal Poly cowboy who is the reigning NCAA Div. I men's college All Around champion - had Sunday's second and third best rides.
Not to be outdone, the Saddle Bronc riders posted the two best scores of the rodeo.
Coming into Sunday, Levi Conry and Steve Dollarhide shared the lead at 78 points. But they went home splitting third and fourth place money.
Cody Martin took the lead Sunday with a 79-point ride aboard Leaving Las Vegas. That lead was short lived as Rusty Allen posted an 82-point score riding Billey Buck to win the Santa Maria championship and push Martin back to second place.
The Bull Riders got a lot of payback on Sunday. Coming into the day, the bulls sent 42 of the first 47 riders into the dirt.
They outdid the cowboys again Sunday, 9-7, but all seven of the successful riders posted good scores - seven of the top nine.
Bryan Richardson took the championship with an 87-point ride on Tuff Target.
Zach Oaks and Tim Wood split second and third place money after identical 83-point rides. Ian Male hit an 81 for his ride that good for a tie for fourth with Luke Haught, the leader heading into Sunday.
Shane Gordon, Bobby Waller and Brady Williams all posted 77s on Sunday, good for a three-way tie for seventh.
The Santa Maria Elks have two local team roping competitions every year as part of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) event.
In the Elks Team Roping Open division, the teams were back for their third go-round - having qualified for Sunday's finals over the first three days of this rodeo.
Mike Draper and Luke Andrews total time of 29.8-seconds on the three runs was good for the championship. Their final run Sunday was 9.6-seconds.
Bill Wineman and Dustin Noblitt had Sunday's quickest run at 8.6-seconds. Their three-go total of 37.4-seconds earned them second place.
Adam and Glenn Teixeira came home with third place.
Shane Torres and Erik Pybas won the Elks Team Roping 5 1/2 Division championship with a 10.4-second run. The competitors in this event qualified during the annual Elks qualifiers over the weekend of May 20.
Torres and Pybas bested three other teams of finalists - Marcey Teixeira and Dr. Van Snow, Chuck Doss and Brad Teixeira and Hannah Lewis and Pete Simmons.
Pat Grohl and Chris Nobles had the day's fastest time - 6.3 seconds - in the PRCA team roping. But it wasn't good enough to get them into the money. Their two-go total of 13-6 seconds wasn't quick enough to get in the money there either.
The PRCA Team Roping champions for 2006 are Kyle Lockett and Wheatley with a two-go total of 10.7-seconds.
Second place went to T.J. Collett and Cody Cowden (11.9), followed by two teams at 13.1-seconds - Travis Woodard and Trent Cornelius and Dan Williams, Jr. and Caleb Twisselman.
In Steer Wrestling, Ron Schenk had Sunday's quickest time at 6.3-seconds but it wasn't enough to catch second go leader Levi Rosser who won the go-round with a 5.0-second time.
Blake Knowles and Rhett Kennedy tied for second/third (5.3) with Tommy Cook in fourth (5.4).
Cook is the overall champion. His 4.1 first go time gave him a 9.5 for the event and the winner's buckle.
Knowles was second at 10.9-seconds with Trevor Duhon finishing third in 11.7-seconds.
In the Tie Down Roping, San Luis Obispo's Clint Cooper was the fastest at 9.9-seconds but that was only good enough for 6th in the go. It wasn't fast enough to catch Daniel Green who's 9.0-second run won the second go.
Green is also the overall champion with a two-go time of 22.3-seconds.
Green was followed by Travis Ortiz (23.4), Jeff Jones (23.5) and Jesse Egan (24.1).
In the Women's Professional Rodeo Association's (WPRA) Barrel Race, Buellton's Jessica Bainer was the quickest through the three barrel course on Sunday with a time of 17.47. She was followed by Stephanie Cosca (19.70) and Kelly Strohmenger (18.06).
Bainer's time was fifth fastest in the second go. Renee George was the second go winner (17.15) followed by Jolee Latauret (17.21), Leandra Spence (17.46) and Rashell Fehlman (17.46).
Sonia Gorrell is the 2006 Santa Maria Barrel Race champion with a two-go total of 35.14-seconds. Tyra Kane (35.16), Sheena Robbins (35.36), Virgina McClintock (35.36) and Lita Scott (35.38) rounded out the top five.
“One one-hundredth or even one one-thousandth of a second can make a hue difference in barrel racing,” said Cindy Roberts. “They are all such good riders and they are all such good, strong horses.”
Roberts lives in San Luis Obispo and is a barrel racer during the summer months only. The rest of the year she's a math teacher and rodeo coach at Atascadero High School.
“My passion is teaching. When I'm not teaching in the classroom, I'm teaching in the arena,” she said. “Three of the cowboys and cowgirls who competed here and are now on the professional circuit took my match classes in high school - Jana Lee Davis and the Arnold Brothers (Justin and Evan).”
The three-man Jason Boone team claimed the final Wild Horse Race victory. The Boone team was followed by the Mike Royle team and the Alex Nacarato team.
The overall Wild Horse champions are the Wade Agin team from Los Alamos.

Dora Student Wins Rodeo State Title

Myra Skinner said her son, Jesse Clark, has had a rope in his hands ever since he could walk, and maybe that’s why he won the boys All-Around Championship in the New Mexico Junior High Rodeo Finals held Friday and Saturday in Lovington. The 13-year old eighth-grader from Dora Schools was pleased with his performance during the weekend especially earning a time of 8.69 seconds in the tie-down run. “It’s one of my best times,” Jesse said. “I did good during the weekend. I’ve been practicing a bunch in the arena at my house.” Skinner said her son started competing in rodeo events at the age of 3. Jesse credits his mom and his dad, Jerry Skinner, with showing him techniques and giving him advice during practices. “We work on technique and being mentally prepared to compete,” his mom said. “He loves the sport. He loves to rope. He had an awesome weekend.” Jesse was also named the boys All-Around Champion for the year by the New Mexico Junior High Rodeo Association. He placed first in the calf roping, first in the ribbon roping, third in the chute dogging, fourth in the goat tying and ninth in the team roping for the year. He’ll compete in the National Junior High Rodeo competition July 10-15 in Gallup against the country’s top junior high rodeo performers in ribbon roping, calf-roping, chute dogging and goat tying (the four events he finished in the top four). Myra Skinner said the top four finishers in each rodeo state final event qualify for nationals in Gallup. Jesse said it’s been a challenge to compete in rodeos, go to school, work on schoolwork and play basketball. However, he said with the help of his parents and basketball coaches, Ty Walker and Caleb King, he’s been able to overcome the challenge. Jesse’s ribbon-roping partner, Katey Anthony of Jal, won the girls All-Around Championship award, according to Myra Skinner. Katey finished first in the goat tying, breakaway roping and ribbon-roping, and second in the pole bending in the state. She will also be competing at the nationals.

PRCA Bails On Albuquerque Re-lo Offer

The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association has bailed out on its decision to relocate to Albuquerque. The Colorado Springs Gazette is headlined this morning with that news, after yesterday's PRCA board meeting. According to the newspaper, the state of New Mexico withdrew its $17 million incentive package on news that the PRCA board voted unanimously to stay in Colorado Springs. The decision, writes the Gazette, was prompted by the unwillingness of the independently controlled ProRodeo Hall of Fame and Museum of the American Cowboy to also move to New Mexico. The city of Colorado Springs also offered $2 million in grants, low interest loans, and a part ownership interest in the Norris-Penrose Equestrian Center.

He's a Coach of Champions

I've been impressed with Tarleton State rodeo coach Bob Doty ever since we met at the 1986 College National Finals Rodeo in Bozeman, Mont.
Doty then coached Western Texas College's rodeo teams. I was reporting for the Star-Telegram, so Doty pointed out that a roper named Keith Hudson was from nearby Paradise.
Hudson won the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association 1986 calf roping title and helped Western Texas win the men's national team title.
Two decades later, Doty still recruits top athletes, and his teams are national title contenders. Last year, Tarleton's men and women won national team titles.
Tarleton will try to repeat that double at next month's College National Finals in Casper, Wyo. Tarleton's men and women advanced by finishing second in the NIRA Southwest Region regular season, which concluded last weekend.
The top two teams and top three competitors in each event from each region advance to the college finals.
Doty said one thing he instills in each of his athletes is that they can always feel confident that they have given their best effort.
"We try to make sure that everyone understands that at the end of the year, if for whatever reason they miss the college finals by a few points, that they still did all that they could to qualify," Doty said. "They can't look back and say something like I didn't practice enough."
Doty, 54, said his longevity as a coach makes it easier to recruit great athletes. He coached at Western Texas from 1979-94 and recruited outstanding athletes such as Dave Appleton, who thrived on the college circuit in the early 1980s and went on to win the 1988 world all-around title. When the Arlington resident was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame this year, Doty sat at Appleton's table.
The successful Western Texas stint helped Doty move to tradition-rich Tarleton in 1994.
"Parents and students trust us," Doty said. "They know that Tarleton is a great school with a great rodeo environment and that we're going to do what we say."
Briefly
Brazilian Guilherme Marchi of Decatur earned $12,692.50, finishing third at the Professional Bull Riders Built Ford Tough Series stop last weekend in Nampa, Idaho. He leads the world title race over second-place Adriano Moraes, a Brazilian who lives in Keller, 7,243.5 points to 6,645.5.
The rodeo in Guymon, Okla., Friday through Sunday marks the end of the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Wrangler ProRodeo Tour winter series. The Pace Chute-Out, the finals of the series featuring the top 12 in each event, is May 13-14 in Tulsa.
The 2006 Windy Ryon Memorial Roping is May 26-28 in Saginaw.

Off to the Rodeo

Ford Arena in Beaumont will be the center of action as the highest paid cowboys in the country compete at the 61st Annual YMBL Championship Rodeo, hosted by the Young Men's Business League. Action starts Thursday, May 4 at 7:30 p.m. and runs through Saturday, May 6 at 7:30 p.m.
More than 300 topranked cowboys from the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association will vie for more than $19,000 in prize money for bullriding, steer wrestling, tiedown roping, saddle bronc, bareback riding, and team roping.
Rodeo action starts each night at 7:30 p.m. The best in rodeo stock will be provided again this year from Beutler and Son Rodeo Company, one of the producers of the National Finals Rodeo for the past 18 years. Also, this year the YMBL Rodeo will be featuring veteran Rodeo Announcer Racer Botkin, along with Bullfighters, Robert "Blue" Jeanes and Dustin Brewer, and for those of you looking for something extreme, this year's rodeo will feature "Pro Tour FMX" Freestyle Motorcross stunt show and the Kiesner Family Trick Riders and Ropers. With National Finals Rodeo stock, bullfighters and World Champion Cowboys, the 2006 YMBL Rodeo will be "the best rodeo this side of Las Vegas."
Ticket prices are $12, $16, $20 and for the rodeo fan who wants to be up close to the action, $30 Action Seats are on the first two rows.
"There's not a bad seat in the house," according to Pat Riley, Rodeo Public Relations coordinator. "Fans will be able to get up close and personal to the action from anywhere in the comfortable air-conditioned arena."

Bucknell making headlines beating big-name opponents

Perhaps it shouldn't be considered an upset any more when Bucknell beats a big-name opponent.
This small private school has developed a reputation for knocking off some of college basketball's big guns over the last couple of seasons. Last year, it scored a regular-season road victory over Pittsburgh and shocked Kansas in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
The latest ranked opponent to fall to the Bison is Syracuse, which was No. 19 when Bucknell scored a 74-69 win on Nov. 22 at the Carrier Dome.
"Whether or not it's a surprise to some people or a lot of people, none of these games are going to be a surprise to us," said Bucknell point guard Abe Badmus, beads of sweat dripping from his face after taking a breather during a recent practice at Bucknell's home court.
But Badmus and his teammates know there's more work to be done, especially with more tough games on the schedule, including a home contest this coming Tuesday against No. 4 Villanova and a trip in January to top-ranked Duke."We haven't proven anything yet, to say that we picked it up from last year," said Badmus, one of five starters and 12 players overall back from last year's 23-10 squad. "We're not at the point where we were doing good things last year."
That's the kind of attitude Bison coach Pat Flannery likes to hear after hammering the phrase "No Entitlements" into his players during preseason. Flannery has instilled confidence in his team but doesn't want his players to rest on last season's accomplishments.
So far, so good, though Bucknell has had some nail-biters.
The Bison needed an off-balance 17-foot jumper from Kevin Bettencourt with 1.2 seconds left to beat Rider 56-54 in the season opener. Against Syracuse, they used a late 13-2 run and hit their free throws to rally to a 74-69 victory.
"We were excited to play a Big East team to see where we measured up," said Bettencourt, who hit 5 of 6 free throws down the stretch against Syracuse. "But we weren't thinking about statements or anything like that."
On the road against Niagara, another NCAA tourney team last season, Bucknell erased a nine-point halftime deficit and held the Purple Eagles to 3-of-22 shooting in the second half on the way to a 63-60 win.Bucknell received 73 votes in the latest Associated Press poll, placing it just oustide the Top 25 and ahead of schools such as Stanford, Kansas and defending national champion North Carolina.
Bucknell's win over the Jayhawks last season was the first NCAA tournament win for a team from the Patriot League, which only started to allow member schools to award basketball scholarships in 1998.
"It's crazy. We're still a Patriot League school and getting all this national attention," center Chris McNaughton said while sitting in the stands underneath the banner commemorating last year's NCAA appearance. "I don't think anyone could have thought that."
Badmus was the Patriot League's defensive player of the year, and teammates say they're confident the 6-foot-10 McNaughton can alter shots if an opponent gets into the paint. But it's McNaughton's offense, and one shot in particular, that stands out for Bucknell fans.
On a banner near the main entrance to Bucknell's home court, Sojka Pavilion, is a picture of a menacing McNaughton putting up the hook shot over Wayne Simien's outstretched arm with 10.5 seconds left in the win over Kansas."In the past, we could play a really, really fine game and change some things in our game plan to compete with some people," Flannery said. "(Now) we are able to go and do some things that we want to do, as opposed to holding the tail and trying to hang on."
Flannery also knows it will be tougher to schedule opponents, especially to come to Lewisburg, with each big win. Convincing Villanova to come to Bucknell was easy, though, because Wildcats coach Jay Wright, like Flannery, graduated from Bucknell. The Bison lost at Villanova, 89-51 last season and go back to Villanova next year.
Bettencourt, one of the team's captains, put his team's success in perspective.
"It's pretty special. It's fun," he said. "But we all realize, one bad game and all the attention goes away."

Rules Research Continues

Research on changes to the collegiate basketball court and playing rules will continue during certified events and preseason games this fall. The Men's Basketball Rules Committee is examining three experimental rules: the three-point line extended to 20 feet, 9 inches, the lane widened by one foot on each side, and a restricted-area arc. In the women's game, the three-point line will be extended to 20 feet, 6 inches, and the 10-second backcourt rule will be utilized.
The same three experimental rules with different dimensions were examined last fall by the Men's Basketball Rules Committee. This year the three-point line is extended 12 inches from its current distance of 19 feet, 9 inches, and the lane is extended by one foot on each side instead of 1 ½ feet. The restricted-area arc will be three feet from the center of the basket instead of two feet.
"We thought the feedback from last year's experimental rules was positive, but we need to make sure we've done all of our homework before we make any significant changes," Larry Keating, chair of the Men's Basketball Rules Committee and senior associate director of athletics at the University of Kansas, said. "Making these changes, which we think are necessary to keep our game current and growing, will mean updating every college court in the country, all three divisions. It is not a decision we're taking lightly."
Participating institutions are asked to track three-point field goal percentages, three-second violations, rebounds from free-throw attempts by lane space, and fouls following free-throw attempts. Last year, data was collected from a 134 games, including 117 from Division I, 14 from Division II and three from Division III.
The 2004 information showed that lengthening the three-point line did not create a significant difference in the number of three-point shots made, shots attempted, or shooting percentage during the experiment. In studying the lane, the percentage of offensive (21 percent) and defensive rebounds (79 percent) per game was consistent with the random sample of regular-season games tracked by the committee. There was no significant difference in the number of three-second violations or fouls after free-throw attempt either.
Coaches' support for changing court dimensions has grown. When asked last season to describe the level of support for adopting the widened collegiate lane and the extended three-point line, 65 percent of participating coaches were either greatly or somewhat in favor of the change.
The women will be experimenting for the first time with the three-point line extended and the 10-second backcourt rule, which is currently one of the primary rule differences between the men's and women's games.
"The men have been looking at court changes for many years, and we are just at the beginning of examining this possibility," Ronda Seagraves, chair of the Women's Basketball Rules Committee and associate athletics director at Southwestern University (Texas), said. "We believe our players are more than capable of utilizing the three-point line nine inches further from the basket. We need to decide if this is good for our game or not."
Data will be collected to look at the number of 10-second violations called during games using the experimental rules and the three-point shooting percentages. Coaches' feedback about the experiences will be sought.
The experimental rules are required to be used during games which have been certified by the NCAA. The men's certified events include: America's Youth Classic, BCA Classic, BCA Invitational, Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout, Coaches vs. Cancer, Colonial Athletic Association Basketball Classic, CoSIDA Classic, EA Sports Maui Invitational, Guardians Classic, Hispanic College Fund Basketball Classic, Jim Thorpe Association Classic, John Thompson Foundation Basketball Classic, Las Vegas Holiday Classic, Las Vegas Holiday Invitational, NABC Classic, National Catholic Basketball Tournament, Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic, Preseason NIT, San Juan Shootout, South Padre Island Invitational, Top of the World Classic, and the University of Virgin Islands Paradise Jam.
The women's certified events are the Ala Moana Hotel Paradise Classic, Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout, Hawaii Airlines Rainbow Wahine Classic, North Star Invitational, Preseason Women's NIT, San Juan Shootout, University of the Virgin Islands Paradise Jam, WBCA/Basketball Travelers Classic, Waikiki Beach Marriott Invitational, Women's Hoops Fall Classic, and the Women's Sports Foundation/Basketball Travelers Challenge.
Institutions are asked to utilize the rules during preseason games and scrimmages during at least one of two preseason to help bolster the data collection, especially in Divisions II and III.

Struckhoff Named Officiating Coordinator

Mary Struckhoff has been named NCAA National Coordinator of Women's Basketball Officiating, the NCAA announced today.
Struckhoff, has served as assistant director of the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS) since 1999, after three years as an assistant executive at the Illinois High School Association (IHSA). As assistant director of the NFHS, Struckhoff serves as editor and national rules interpreter for basketball and softball; staff liaison for the NFHS Officials Association; coordinator of the NFHS Officials Education Program and workshop organization for the NFHS summer meeting and National Athletic Administrators' Conference.
"Mary is a knowledgeable and committed educator who has balanced experience in education, officiating and administration," said Sue Donohoe, vice-president for Division I women's basketball. "Her core values align with the NCAA's strategic plan and the vision for women's basketball officiating. She is sure to bring women's basketball officiating to a new level."
Struckhoff replaces Marcy Weston, who is retiring from the position. Weston is senior associate director of athletics at Central Michigan University.
Struckhoff will coordinate the NCAA's women's basketball officiating program. The program helps promote better communication between officials, conference coordinators of officials, coaches and the NCAA, and helps provide consistency in the interpretations of NCAA women's basketball rules and officiating mechanics. Additionally, Struckhoff will assist the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee in the identification, training, selection and evaluation of officials for the Division I championship.
Struckhoff has officiated NCAA women's basketball in seven Division I conferences. She has worked several post-season tournaments including conference championship finals, the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship and the WNIT.
Struckhoff serves on several committees and boards, including the Officiating Development Alliance; Women's Basketball Hall of Fame Board of Directors; Amateur Softball Association's Council; and the Equipment Standards Committee.
Prior to joining the IHSA staff, Struckhoff was involved in teaching, coaching and athletic administration at high schools in St. Louis and Chicago for 10 years. Her teaching background includes physical education, health, mathematics and computer science courses. Struckhoff has coached softball, basketball, volleyball and tennis.
"I am excited to build on the program and legacy that Marcy (Weston) started," Struckhoff said. "The student-athletes, coaches, administrators and officials involved in the women's game are passionate groups. Our goal is to work together to make the women's game the best it can possibly be. I'm thrilled to be a part of that endeavor."
Struckhoff earned a bachelor's degree in 1982 from Benedictine College (Kansas) in physical education and a master's degree in athletic administration in 1991 from Western Illinois University. While an undergraduate, she played on the tennis and softball teams.
A native of St. Louis, Struckhoff currently resides in Indianapolis.

How NCAA basketball rules could change

THE 3-POINT LINE RULE
Potential change: For the men, lengthening the distance from 19 feet, 9 inches to 20 feet, 9 inches. For the women, lengthening it to 20 feet, 6 inches.
The skinny: Supporters say the change would not dip 3-point shooting percentage, simply keep bad shooters from taking 3-pointers. "Make these guys make some shots," said Charlie Coles, the Miami University men's basketball coach.
THE LANE/3-SECOND RULE
Potential change: For the men, widening the lane by one foot on each side.
The skinny: This change would likely hurt teams that have dominant inside games, keeping the big men further away from the basket. Some say the bodies have just become too big to keep the lane as it is.
10-SECOND RULE FOR WOMEN
Potential change: For the first time, limit women to 10 seconds to advance the ball past the half-court line. The men already have this rule.
The skinny: Coaches say this would need to coincide with a shot-clock increase from 30 seconds to 35 seconds, where it is for the men. Many teams already utilize the press, but this rule would put more pressure on the ball-handlers.