CASPER, Wyo. - The Black Hills State University women's rodeo team had a quick start to begin the 2026 College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) as Emma Ohm tied for the lead in breakaway roping after Sunday's first go. Making her third career appearance at the CNFR, the round secured her first official time in the event after six previous runs at nationals, putting herself among the four in the driver's seat early on to make the 12-person championship round on Saturday night at the Ford Wyoming Center.
HOW IT HAPPENED
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Emma Ohm, a senior for the Yellow Jacket cowgirls, kicked off her third CNFR appearance in style with a 2.1 second run in the first go of breakaway roping, tying for first place in the event after the opening round. The tie for the event victory earns Ohm and the Yellow Jackets 65 points.
NOTES
- Ohm, who qualified for the CNFR in breakaway roping in both 2023 and 2025, had not been able to post a time in the event in either of her previous two appearances.
- A Yellow Jacket had not earned a round victory or tied for a round win since Clayton Backhaus earned a win in the first go of team roping with Lan Fuhrer of South Dakota State in 2024. That pair would go on to finish third in the event overall.
- It is the second time in the last four years a Yellow Jacket breakaway roper has been able to win a round or tie for a round victory, and Ohm is the first to do so since 2023 when Sydney Theobald did so in the first go with a time of 2.4 seconds to begin the week in a 4-way tie in the event.
- Black Hills State earned their first points at the CNFR in the women's team competition since 2023, when the Yellow Jacket cowgirls tallied 125 points for a 13th place finish.
- The first go of breakaway roping made for a wide open week of competition for the national title as none of the nation's top-10 ranked athletes placed higher than 30th in the first round of the week, and only two of the top-15 nationally ranked cowgirls finished within the top-15 on Sunday (No. 11 Addison Arnzen, Blue Mountain Community College, T-12th, 2.6 seconds & No. 15 Elizabeth Miranda, Cal Poly State University, T-6th, 2.6 seconds).
BREAKAWAY ROPING TOP-10 STANDINGS
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Alissa Erickson (Cisco College)
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Ruby Espey (Missouri Valley College)
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Brooke Bruner (Clarendon College)
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Ella Begger (College of Southern Idaho)
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Brynn Leavitt (Weber State University)
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Elizabeth Miranda (Cal Poly State University)
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Hailey Burger (Montana State University)
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Madison Scott (Fort Hays State University)
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Morgan Bodenhemier (Texas Tech University)
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Rylee Abel (Tarleton State University)
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NEXT UP
The Black Hills State University women's rodeo team will have its final three national qualifiers begin their week on Monday, June 15, at the College National Finals Rodeo in the 7 a.m. slack at the Ford Wyoming Center in Casper, Wyoming. The day starts with barrel racing as Sierra Steele and the nation's No. 2 in the event, Jayda Reinert, compete in section one of Go 1, and the morning then concludes with Haley Husted in section one of Go 1 of goat tying.
