Former and current NMSU rodeo team members hold their own at Frank DuBois Saddle Bronc and Calf Roping event

New Mexico State University students and members of the rodeo team competed at the Frank DuBois Bronc Riding and Calf Roping April 4 at the Southern New Mexico State Fairgrounds in Las Cruces, N.M.

Olan Borg, of Camp Verde, Ariz., a former NMSU student and rodeo team member, was the overall winner of the saddle bronc riding event. Borg won both the first round and the short-go with a score of 77. He earned more than $1,500 for his first-place rides. A current team member, Dean Daly, of Belen, N.M., tied for fourth place in the saddle bronc, with a score of 73.

Wacey Walraven, of Datil, N.M., was the overall winner for the tie-down roping, winning the showdown round and $1,500 with a time of 9.8 seconds. Walraven is an NMSU student and a former rodeo team member.

Current rodeo team member JoDan Mirabal, of Grants, N.M., won the second round of the tie-down roping with a time of 10.1 seconds.

Former rodeo team member John Pete Etcheverry, of Carlsbad, N.M., won the first round of the calf roping with a time of 10 seconds. Casey Wilson, from Arizona, won rounds three and five with times of 8.6 and 9.1 seconds, respectively. Beau Marshall, of Truth or Consequences, N.M., won round four with a time of 8.5 seconds.

There were 15 calf ropers who competed. Of those, four were current members of the NMSU rodeo team and five were former members. Nineteen riders competed in the saddle bronc event, with three current members, one former member and a future member participating.

The saddle bronc riders competed in one round, with the top five riders going on to compete in a short-go round. The total pay-out was $2,900. The tie-down roping had five elimination rounds and a showdown, with each round paying $150 and the final round paying $1,500 to the winner.

Competitors came from as far away as Nebraska and Montana to participate in the event.
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