DRAWS RELEASED AS UT MARTIN REPRESENTATIVES PREPARE FOR 2019 COLLEGE NATIONAL FINALS RODEO

Sunday, June 9

Casper, Wyo.

UT Martin

71st Annual College National Finals Rodeo

DRAWS RELEASED AS UT MARTIN REPRESENTATIVES PREPARE FOR 2019 COLLEGE NATIONAL FINALS RODEO

6/3/2019 5:14:00 PM | Rodeo

ESPN3 (Wednesday through Saturday)2019 CNFR Official Draws

MARTIN, Tenn. – The official draws for the 71^st annual College National Finals Rodeo were unveiled this afternoon as 10 University of Tennessee at Martin cowboys and cowgirls will hit the big stage in Casper, Wyo. on June 9-15.

The 2019 CNFR once again takes place at the Casper Events Center, as the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association will award national team championships to men's and women's teams. Individual event champions in saddle bronc riding, bareback riding, bull riding, tie down roping, steer wrestling, team roping, barrel racing, breakaway roping and goat tying will also be crowned as over 400 participants from over 100 universities and colleges will compete.

The UT Martin women's team earned the Ozark Region championship for the first time since 2011, tallying 2,417.50 points in the process. The squad currently ranks 17^th in the national standings after notching the third regional championship in head coach John Luthi's tenure. Making the trip to Casper on the women's side is Casey Allen (barrel racing), Ashley Brooks (barrel racing), Kailey Schmidt (breakaway roping and goat tying) and Raegan Taylor (barrel racing).

Ranked No. 11 nationally, the UT Martin men's squad will make its 45^th CNFR appearance in the last 46 years. The team piled up 5,250 points on its way to a second-place finish in the Ozark Region this season. The men's squad have collected eight national top-10 finishes since 2005, including the 2014 national championship. This year's men's qualifiers include Hunter Green (bareback riding), Robert Haley (saddle bronc riding), Will McCraw (team roping), Ryan McDaniel (bull riding), Quentin Sawyer (team roping) and Chase Thrasher (tiedown roping).

"I think everybody we are taking has a really solid chance to be very competitive out there," said UT Martin head coach John Luthi, who is in his 22^nd season at the helm of the program. "I feel like every one of them is capable of winning big. Just like all year, we have to be able to walk out of the arena knowing that we did our part. I think they're going to be loose and relaxed. The fun part about it is that you go out there and you know you have a good shot to do something special."

A junior from Vandergrift, Pa., Allen ranked third in the Ozark Region and eighth nationally with 665 points in barrel racing. Brooks' 660 points ranked fourth in the Ozark Region and 20^th in the nation in barrel racing as the graduate from South Fulton, Tenn. will be making her second career CNFR appearance. Schmidt, a Cottage Grove, Tenn. native who ranked second in the Ozark Region in the all-around cowgirl standings as a freshman, ranked in the top-five in the region in breakaway roping (405 points) and goat tying (467.5 points). A senior out of Camden, Tenn., Taylor ranked second in the Ozark Region and eighth nationally with 800 points in barrel racing.

Green piled up 1,240 points in bareback riding, as the junior from Bastrop, La. ranked second in the Ozark Region and ninth nationally in that event. A junior out of Fairhope, Ala., Haley ranked second in the Ozark Region and 13^th in the nation with 890 points in saddle bronc riding. An East Bend, NC native, McCraw's 540 points as a heeler during his sophomore campaign were good enough for third in the Ozark Region standings and 19^th nationally. Making his third career CNFR appearance is McDaniel, as the senior from Yuma, Tenn. led the Ozark Region with 350 points in bull riding. A senior from Whitewater, Mo., Sawyer's 540 header points ranked third in the Ozark Region and 22^nd in the nation. Thrasher earned 755 points to rank second in the Ozark Region and seventh nationally in tiedown roping, as the sophomore from Columbia, Tenn. will make his second career CNFR showing.

To view the official draws from the 2019 CNFR, as well as access the ESPN3 links from the Wednesday through Saturday performances, access the links above.