Rodeo May 3, 2026 Claire Gay, UMW Sports Information

UMW Men’s Rodeo Finishes Second in Big Sky Region, Earns Trip to CNFR

MISSOULA, Mont. – The Montana Western men's rodeo team took second and the women's team placed third in the regular-season finale at the University of Montana Saturday.

By securing second place in the Big Sky Region, the men's team has punched its ticket to the College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) later this year. The women's team finished third in the region, narrowly missing the team qualification spot.

UMW won two events in the short go and one in the average over the weekend.

Cardell Laughery won both the short go and the average in the saddle bronc while Gavin Knutson won the championship round in the bull riding.

LONG GO RESULTS
Tie-Down Roping
Jade Ramon was in fifth after one round of tie-down with a 12.9-second run.

Breakaway Roping
Taylor Burgee was tied for fourth (2.6) and Tori Murnion sat sixth (2.7) in breakaway after the long go.

Saddle Bronc
Cardell Laughery tied for first in the long go with a score of 65 in the saddle bronc.

Steer Wrestling
Tatum Hansen was tied for fourth after one round in the steer wrestling, registering a 9.6-second run.

Goat Tying
Josie Robbins was tied for third in the long-go goat tying after a 7.2-second first run.

Barrel Racing
Laura Haight sat sixth in the barrels with a 17.61-second ride in the long go.

Team Roping
Charlee Resch and Dillon Waymire finished fifth in the opening round of team roping with a 12.7-second run.

SHORT GO RESULTS
Bareback Riding
Jeremy Kay finished second in the short go bareback with a 64 in the round.

Tie-Down Roping
Jade Ramon placed fourth in the tie-down with an 11.8-second run.

Breakaway Roping
Brylan Garrett (4.1) and Laura Haight (4.3) took third and fourth, respectively, in the breakaway.

Saddle Bronc
Laughery posted a 71 in the saddle bronc to win the short go.

Steer Wrestling
Tatum Hansen finished sixth in the second round of steer wrestling with a 10.6-second effort on the evening.

Goat Tying
Josie Robbins placed fifth in the goat tying with a 7.5-second run in the short go.

Barrel Racing
Haight earned a fourth-place finish in the championship round of barrels with a 17.79-second ride.

Team Roping
Knutson and Luke Garrison placed second in the short go team roping with a 10.1.

Bull Riding
Knutson posted an 86 in the bull biding to place first while Westen Wade earned a 79 to take second in the short go.

AVERAGE
Tie-Down Roping
Ramon placed third overall in the tie-down with a 24.7-second aggregate time.

Breakaway Roping
Haight and Garrett also finished third and fourth in the average breakaway with two-run times of 7.1 and 7.3 seconds, respectively.

Saddle Bronc
Laughery was the lone saddle-bronc rider to post two clean rides, winning the average with a 136 combined score.

Steer Wrestling
Hansen finished fifth overall in the steer wrestling with an average time of 20.2 seconds.

Goat Tying
Robbins took home fourth in the average goat tying with a 14.7-second combined time while Kaylee Kesl tied for sixth at 15.7 seconds.

Barrel Racing
Haight's two-run time of 35.4 was good for a third-place showing in the average barrels.

Team Roping
Knutson and Garrison placed third in the overall team roping with a 27.6-second time over two rounds.

COLLEGE NATIONAL FINALS QUALIFIERS
The Bulldogs now turn their attention to the CNFR, taking place June 14-20 in Casper, Wyo. The position draw for those who qualified will be held June 7.

In the rough stock events (bareback, saddle bronc, bull riding), five UMW riders qualified for CNFR. Coy Montgomery and Jeremy Kay will represent Montana Western in the bareback.

Cardell Laughery and Cade Costello made the cut in saddle bronc and Gavin Knutson will don the Red and Black in the bull riding.

Knutson will also compete in the team roping alongside partner Luke Garrison.

Jake Deveraux rounds out the group as a qualifier in the tie-down roping.

For complete coverage of UMW Rodeo, be sure to follow us on social media at @umw_rodeo (Instagram) and @University of Montana Western Rodeo Team (Facebook) or visit our official website at UMWBulldogs.com.

#GOBULLDOGS!

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Players Mentioned

Cade Costello: Saddle Bronc / Tie Down Roping / Team Roping; Junior

Jake Deveraux: Team Roping / Tie Down Roping; Graduate Student

Laura Haight: Barrel Racing / Team Roping; Junior

Tatum Hansen: Steer Wrestling / Team Roping; 6' 0"; Sophomore

Jeremy Kay: Bull Riding / Bareback Riding; 5' 11"; Sophomore

Gavin Knutson: Bull Riding / Tie Down Roping / Team Roping; 5' 9"; Senior

Cardell Laughery: Saddle Bronc; 6' 0"; Junior

Tori Murnion: Breakaway / Barrel Racing; 5' 7"; Senior

Jade Ramon: Tie Down Roping / Team Roping; 5' 8"; Sophomore

Charlee Resch: Goat Tying / Breakaway Roping; Junior

Brylan Garrett: Breakway Roping, Barrels, Goat Tying; Freshman

Taylor Burgee: Barrels, Breakaway Roping, Team Roping; Junior

Players Mentioned

Cade Costello
: Junior
: Saddle Bronc / Tie Down Roping / Team Roping

Jake Deveraux
: Graduate Student
: Team Roping / Tie Down Roping

Laura Haight
: Junior
: Barrel Racing / Team Roping

Tatum Hansen
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: Steer Wrestling / Team Roping

Jeremy Kay
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: Bull Riding / Bareback Riding

Gavin Knutson
: 5' 9"; Senior
: Bull Riding / Tie Down Roping / Team Roping

Cardell Laughery
: 6' 0"; Junior
: Saddle Bronc

Tori Murnion
: 5' 7"; Senior
: Breakaway / Barrel Racing

Jade Ramon
: 5' 8"; Sophomore
: Tie Down Roping / Team Roping

Charlee Resch
: Junior
: Goat Tying / Breakaway Roping

Brylan Garrett
: Freshman
: Breakway Roping, Barrels, Goat Tying

Taylor Burgee
: Junior
: Barrels, Breakaway Roping, Team Roping