ProRodeo Sports News - August 10, 2018

CHEYENNE FRONTIER DAYS

Chad Masters and Joseph Harrison came from behind to win the average in the final round. Dan Hubbell photo

Masters, Harrison win team roping

I t all came down to the final round for team ropers Chad Masters and Joseph Harrison. The duo didn’t place in the first two rounds at Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days but clocking in at 7.6 seconds in the final round placed them nearly two seconds ahead in the average for a $10,752 payday. “This is an awesome rodeo, and I’ve never won anything of this magnitude,” Harrison said. Winning Cheyenne launched Masters 17 spots in the PRCA | RAM World Standings, from 31st to 14th in team roping heading. Harrison moved from eighth to fourth among heelers. Masters won Cheyenne in 2009 and both cowboys have qualified for the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo. Harrison competed in Las Vegas in 2017, and Masters has gone 11 times (2003-04, 2006-12, 2015 and 2017), winning world titles in 2007 and 2012. “The year I won it (Cheyenne), I was having a good year,” Masters said.

in the finals. Making a 13.9-second run in the finals won the average by a margin of 4.7 seconds with 46.4 seconds on three head. Poppino didn’t know what his steer was going to do as he entered the final round at Cheyenne. “They were all fresh,” Poppino said. “He looked good and he was my pick of the bunch.” Poppino was riding Shaggy, the 22-year-old brother of the horse his mom, Tana, rode during her last trip to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo in 2010. Brodie Poppino is no stranger to the big stage, having competed at the ClemMcSpadden National Finals Steer Roping in 2014 and 2015. Brodie is the first Poppino to win Cheyenne, as neither his mom nor his dad, Marty, have won it. “I think it’s about their turn,” Poppino said. “I like to see them win.” –Matt Naber “This year, it’ll mean more because I’m needing it.” Their luck at Cheyenne changed in the final round. Masters was competing on 2017 PRCA | AQHA Team Roping Heading Horse of the Year, Clint. “I’ve had him here before and I fell off him in 2015, and this was better than that year,” Masters said. “This is his kind of setup with long barriers.” Harrison was riding his 8-year-old mare, Lula. “She doesn’t miss the turn, and she is fast-footed and stops the steers good,” Harrison said. Masters and Harrison won the three-head average by a margin of 1.7 seconds with a time of 26.4 seconds. “The first four or five guys (in the finals) made the same kind of run, and they just needed to have our steer,” Harrison laughed. “It’s a great steer, I’d love to own him.” –Matt Naber

Win moves Poppino intoTop 10 S teer roper Brodie Poppino scored his first win of the 2018 season and a $10,801 check at Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days. “It’s one of the most prestigious ones, and it’s called ‘The Daddy of ‘emAll’ for a reason,” Poppino said. “Everyone wants to

win it, and it’s a dream come true.” The Oklahoma cowboy had been chugging along and picking up checks, so winning Cheyenne moved him from 14th to eighth in the PRCA | RAM World Standings. “You can make the Finals $1,000 at a time, but to get a big one is awesome,” said Poppino, 27. “This year has been up and down. I’ve been in the Top 15, and this will push me a lot, I’m close to making the Finals. I’d rope good and draw bad or rope bad and draw good.” Although he didn’t place in the first two rounds, Poppino pulled through

ProRodeo Sports News 8/10/2018

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