Montana State Bobcats flex depth while claiming team titles at first spring rodeo

“Seeing the atmosphere and the people getting behind this is just awesome,” Atkinson said Friday, “and motivates me that much more to be better and do better and do my best so I can put on a show for these great people.”

And what a show it was.

The freshman from Black Diamond, Alberta, Canada, has had a blistering start to his college rodeo career — entering the first event of the spring season sitting third in men’s all-around points and fourth in saddle bronc riding. He continued his standout season on Thursday by winning the saddle bronc round with an 80-point ride. Atkinson followed on Friday, delivering in the clutch with a 70-point performance to give him a combined score of 150.

Atkinson had watched three other competitors complete second rides, putting the pressure on him to do the same in the final spot of the lineup. Atkinson’s 70 pushed him well ahead and gave him a second victory lap in as many evenings — allowing him to bask in the crowd’s applause he had so admired a year before.

“I’ve been waiting to get my shot at it all year,” he said. “So glad to finally do it and do good.”

Atkinson’s performance helped the Montana State men easily pull away in the team race at the first of two consecutive rodeos in the Brick this week. The Bobcat men compiled 1,180 points, and Montana Western was next at 445. MSU’s women also won with 395 points, clearing Western by 65 points.

Also placing in the saddle bronc riding and scoring points for MSU were sophomore Ryley Mapston (sixth place, 47 points on one ride) and freshman Ryatt Thomson (fifth, 128 points on two rides).

MSU sophomore Cole Gerhardt won the men’s all-around with 310 points, helped by a victory in bareback riding (73-75—148) and a third-place showing in tie down roping (23.5 seconds total). Senior Wes Shaw placed third in the bareback riding with 142 points, helping back up Gerhardt’s performance and showcasing more of the team’s depth.

“I got lots of guys pushing me in the bronc riding on our team, and that just makes me so much better,” Atkinson said. “We’re on the same team, but we’re still fighting against each other, but doesn’t matter. We’re still friends at the end of the day, and we’re all trying to reach the same goal.”

Winning the tie down roping was sophomore Wyatt Jensen in 22.5 seconds across the two rounds, and freshman Mitch Detton was second (23.0 seconds). Junior teammate Traver Johnson was sixth with just one completed run.

Jensen and senior teammate Hayden Taylor won the team roping with a two-run time of 11.3 seconds, including a swift 4.9-second run on Friday evening. As is usually the case with team roping partners, their differing personalities have led them to success. They entered the weekend seventh in the Big Sky Region in the team roping.

“Hayden is so chill. I’m a little more uptight about stuff,” Jensen said, “so he always tends to calm me down before runs, and we just go have fun out there. It’s awesome.

“We got together this fall, and we decided we wanted to rope, and I just have all the faith that I can in him.”

Jensen, a native of Blackfoot, Idaho, placed third in the tie down roping at the College National Finals Rodeo last year, qualifying as the Big Sky Region champion in the event. He entered this weekend eighth in the Big Sky standings, so he’ll need a strong finish to the season to get back there.

“It was an awesome feeling (last season), and it was a great sense of accomplishment,” Jensen said. “And the way I look at it is, this is a new year, and everybody starts from zero, so we've got to go do the same stuff we did last year.”

MSU’s women had at least three placers in their three events. Anneliese McCurry (27.67 seconds), Piper Cordes (27.69) and Alexis McDonald (27.86) went 1-3 in the barrel racing, and Ava Shepherd was fifth (28.22). Michaela McCormick was second in the goat tying (12.9 seconds), while Faith Marshall was third (13) and Jenae Whitaker was sixth (14.8). And Cassidy Bolich, Breyer Newman and Ella Moedl were all part of a four-way tie for second place in the breakaway roping at 5.7 seconds, along with Western’s Charlee Resch.

Montana State’s men also dominated in the steer wrestling, taking five of the six placing spots. Gerhardt was sixth with a two-run total of 16.6 seconds. Shaw and Detton tied for second (11.2), and Michael Nannini was fourth (11.6). Leading them all was Cole Detton, Mitch’s older brother, who finished at 9 seconds across his two runs.

“It all comes down to what steers you drew, and I was very happy with both runs I made,” said Cole Detton, a junior from Great Falls. “One steer was faster, the other steer was slower. That takes a horse that you have to be able to score on, and for that I have to give a lot of credit to my horse (Tiffany).”

Cole received an assist from brother Mitch, who rode across from him on the haze horse.

“I trust him with my life,” Cole said. “There’s no other person out there I’d rather have haze for me.”

Cole hazes for Mitch as well, and they entered the weekend first and seventh, respectively, in the Big Sky’s steer wrestling — the brotherly trust paying dividends both ways. Cole, also fourth in the men’s all-around for the season, savored his victory lap in front of the Bozeman faithful.

“There’s no other rodeo I’ve ever been to quite like it,” he said of competing in the Brick. “I don’t know if there’s a college rodeo out there that can compare to it.”

Potentially the only rival in atmosphere is the CNFR itself, and that’s where Cole has his sights set.

“Very happy with the draws I’ve had and how my horses have been working,” he said. “It’s a year to remember.”