Girls compete at rodeo finals
By Lynsi Musselman
Two recent graduates of Albany High School competed in the Texas High School Rodeo Association finals that took place last week in Abilene at the Taylor County Coliseum.
Contestants Gracie LeMay and Mady Connally, along with Albany High School senior Addie Beth Denton, all qualified with Region 3 to compete in the state finals.
Denton broke her hand and underwent surgery two weeks before the finals, putting her out of competition.
Denton’s mother, Dena Denton, said Addie Beth was disappointed but glad it was not her last year to compete.
LeMay and Connally were contestants in the Monday go-rounds in Abilene between Region 3 and Region 10, LeMay in goat tying and Connally in pole bending.
LeMay scored an average of 8.820 seconds in the first go-round and second go-round to move her on to the short go where her day ended, but putting her in the top 15 in the state in girls goat tying.
The object of the goat tying event is to race to the end of the rodeo arena where a goat is staked out on a 10-foot rope.
Contestants dismount their horse while it is sliding to a stop or running, and race to the staked-out goat, which must be flipped to its side in order to tie together three of its legs with a nylon or cotton rope
Finally, contestants signal with their hands to indicate the end of their run. The contestant with the fastest time wins.
Connally scored a 21.660 in the first go-round of pole bending, and a 21.046 in the second go-round to finish her finals.
Pole bending is a timed event that features a horse and one mounted rider running a weaving path around six poles arranged in a line.
When the pattern is completed, the horse and rider then gallop back past the poles and through the timer. If the rider knocks over a pole, she is penalized, resulting in either disqualification from the event or a five-second penalty per knocked pole.
The top four contestants in each event will represent Texas at the National High School Rodeo Finals in Lincoln, Nebraska July 19-25.
