Dena Freese, a junior from Gardner, Colo., sits 25th in barrel racing, and Jessica Bolerjack, a sophomore from Gillette, who finished behind Fish in the region in goat tying, had a no-time. The UW men struggled. The best showings were turned in by Barry Kreikemeier, a junior from West Point, Neb., eighth in steer wrestling, and Brandon Jacobs, a junior from Flandreau, S.D., ninth in calf roping. UW rodeo teams competed in slack competition Monday morning, and the round continues today. The top 12 contestants in each of the six men's and three women's events earn a spot in the short go for the opportunity to compete for a national title.
Fish is one of the few women to compete in three events.
The first day proved to be a busy one, but the junior who won both the goat tying and breakaway roping titles this season in the Central Rocky Mountain Region wouldn't have it any other way. You're not sitting around thinking about just one event. She began the day by holding the goat tying lead for most of the round until Tricia Pickard of Panhandle State University posted a 6.9 to overtake Fish by just two-tenths of a second. Later in the afternoon, she had the bad breakaway roping round, but Fish and Flint came back to turn in the second fastest time in team roping. When you come into the arena you have to focus even more, so I couldn't think too long about my miss.