Pictured: Kelon Andrews and Hayden Sanders won the Team Roping event at the SHSU rodeo.
By: Justin Hargrove, Assistant Athletic Director
Northeast Texas Community College Rodeo has concluded the Fall Season for the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA) Southern Region with a trip to the Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas November 6-8. The Eagle Men’s Team had a great showing in Team Roping and finished in third place as a team.
Team Roping partners Kelon Andrews (Header) and Hayden Sanders (Heeler) took the win in round one with a time of 5.4 seconds and then in the finals took care of business with a time of 5.6 to win the Rodeo with a combined time of 11.0, two seconds faster than the second-place team.
The Team Roping Duo of Kelon Andrews and Hayden Sanders is sitting in third place at the conclusion of the Fall season with the top three teams moving on to the College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) in Casper, Wyoming in June. Andrews is looking for his third trip to the CNFR and Sanders looks to make it back to back trips as well.
Teyton Barton of NTCC is currently in fourth place as a header in Team Roping and looking to make it two years in a row in Casper as well. Both groups have put themselves in a good position heading in the winter break.
On the Women’s team, Payton Barnes placed third in Round 1 to make it back to the finals with a time of 2.3 seconds in the Ladies Breakaway roping, then turned in a 2.4 second run in the finals to bring home second place. First place finisher, Camryn Richard of McNeese State University was just a tenth of a second faster to win the event.
Barnes moved into ninth place in the Region after the Fall series of Rodeos and looks to continue her success in the spring and make a run at qualifying for the CNFR.
The top three individuals in each Southern Region event at the conclusion of the spring season will qualify for the College National Finals Rodeo in Casper, Wyoming in June. The top two teams in the Region also qualify as well.
The Eagles and the rest of the Southern region will return to action February 20-21, 2026 when they head to College Station for the Texas A&M University Rodeo.
