Saturday, June 28, 2008

Daly comes up short at nationals

Jason W. Brooks News-Bulletin Staff Writer; jbrooks@news-bulletin.com

Dean Daly managed a score of 77 in the third go of the saddle bronc competition at the College National Finals Rodeo on June 18. However, it was to be his last ride at the finals.

Daly's no-score runs in the first two rounds earlier that week at the Casper, Wyo., event kept the Belen resident from advancing to the finals. He finished 27th with an average score of 35, far from his fifth-place effort at nationals in 2007.

"I'm still proud of him," said Jim Dewey Brown, Daly's rodeo coach at NMSU. "He did what he went there to do, and I'm real pleased."

Daly, a sophomore who easily won the Grand Canyon Region title in the spring, had a no score on his first run, but almost toughed out the second go.

Riding a horse named Ted in the second round, according to Brown, the sophomore hung on for about seven seconds, falling off just before the eight-second buzzer.

"At least he made it back to nationals," said Brown.

Chuck Schmidt of Black Hills State University won the national saddle bronc championship. Despite Daly's struggles, the NMSU squads went on to make an impressive mark at nationals.

The men were 15th, up from 33rd in 2007, and the women improved from eighth to a close second behind Nevada-Las Vegas. The Eastern New Mexico University men were eighth.

Four NMSU athletes won national titles. Wyatt Aldhoff won the men's All-Around individual Cowboy title, while freshman Johhny Salvo of Datil won the tiedown (calf) roping championship. Bailey Gow won the barrel racing title, and Megan Albrecht was second in the goat tying to lead the women.

Daly was one of 11 NMSU men who made the trip, while six women competed for the team. Both teams won the Grand Canyon Region team titles earlier this season.

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