Silhouette

Issue date: 5/11/06 Section: Sports

Cort Scheer, Elmere, Neb., rides saddle-bronc during practice Feb. 22. Scheer will be participating in the College National Final Rodeo in Casper, Wyo., June 11-18 with Casey Colletti, Pueblo, Colo., and Trevor Cox, Purdum, Neb. All three are No. 1 in the Central Plains Rodeo.

The men's rodeo team finished their 2005-06 season with a fourth place finish in the region. They finished in fourth place overall but are the No. 1 Kansas rodeo team, placing over all other 2-year and 4-year Kansas college teams. Head coach Jim "Jim Boy" Hash said it is a big deal because it means they have outscored Fort Scott, Kan.

"They [Fort Scott] are pretty tough, they have always been a tough program," Hash said.

Casey Colletti, Pueblo, Colo., said it is excellent to have overthrown Fort Scott because they have a good team of bareback riders.

Along with finishing the season off with a regional ranking of fourth place, the Buster rodeo team will have three men representing them at the College National Final Rodeo (CNFR) in Casper, Wyo., June 11-18. These men are Colletti, bareback riding, Cort Scheer, Elmere, Neb., in saddle-bronc riding and steer wrestler Trevor Cox, Purdum, Neb. In order to qualify for nationals they had to place in the top three in their individual event. All three Busters won the No. 1 position and were given a saddle and buckle for their achievement.

Participants in events requiring livestock have to draw the name of the animal they will ride out of a hat. This method is used so that each cowboy has a fair chance at winning their event.

Scheer said he was surprised to have won the region and believes drawing a good bucking horse helped him achieve this.

"[I was] pretty surprised, there are so many guys who could win just as easy," Scheer said. "It is the luck of the draw."

Cox made his first appearance at the CNFR after winning the Great Plains Region in 2004. This year Cox won the No. 1 position in the Central Plains Region and said winning this year was better than the first of the competition.

"There are more kids in this region so there are more people who can beat you," Cox said.

Not only did Cox have more people to compete against but he also returned from knee surgery.

Colletti will also be participating at the rodeo final and said he thinks having more than one member of the Buster rodeo team going will help keep each other calm and be more fun.

"It will be more fun with three of us and not one," Colletti said. "We'll keep the pressure off each other."

Scheer also said having teammates at the final rodeo will be good support.

"It's great [to have other members going]," Sheer said. "They push me to meet their level [of competition]."

Hash said he expects the men will do well at the CNFR, especially if they draw well livestock in their individual event.

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