Four BHSU rodeo athletes head to college finals

WALLA WALLA, Wash. – The National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association (NIRA) announced the position draws for the 2026 College National Finals Rodeo (CNFR) on Sunday afternoon, providing a week full of action for four Black Hills State University cowgirls Sunday, June 14, through Saturday, June 20. The event will once again be held at the Ford Wyoming Center in Casper, Wyoming, a place it has called home since 1999. The Yellow Jackets, who earned a team bid with a runner-up finish in the Great Plains Region, will send Jayda Reinert (barrel racing), Sierra Steele (barrel racing), Emma Ohm (breakaway roping), and Haley Husted (goat tying) to Casper. 

SUNDAY, JUNE 14 (1 PM MATINEE)

Emma Ohm (Breakaway Roping | Go 1 | Section 1) 

MONDAY, JUNE 15 (7 AM SLACK)

Sierra Steele (Barrel Racing | Go 1 | Section 1) 

Jayda Reinert (Barrel Racing | Go 1 | Section 1) 

Haley Husted (Goat Tying | Go 1 | Section 1) 

TUESDAY, JUNE 16 (7 AM SLACK)

Jayda Reinert (Barrel Racing | Go 2 | Section 1) 

Sierra Steele (Barrel Racing | Go 2 | Section 1) 

Emma Ohm (Breakaway Roping | Go 2 | Section 2) 

Haley Husted (Goat Tying | Go 2 | Section 2) 

TUESDAY, JUNE 16 (7 PM PERFORMACE | ESPN+)

Sierra Steele (Barrel Racing | Go 3 | Section 1) 

FRIDAY, JUNE 19 (7 PM PERFORMANCE | ESPN+)

Emma Ohm (Breakaway Roping | Go 3 | Section 4) 

Haley Husted (Goat Tying | Go 3 | Section 4) 

Jayda Reinert (Barrel Racing | Go 3 | Section 4) 

Reinert ran away with the 2025-26 barrel racing title in the Great Plains Region, accumulating a total of 1,145 points with seven titles in ten appearances this season, 632 points ahead of second in the region. The regional champion ranks No. 2 in the nation in the event and is one of just three individuals nationally to surpass 1,000 points on the year in barrel racing. She earned top barrel racer honors at the Falcon Frontier Days Rodeo (32.11), Mid-Plains Community College Stampede Rodeo #1 (18.05 – 1 Go), Blue Hawk Stampede (35.07), Mystic Stampede (34.93), Triton Stampede (28.89), Will Lantis Yellow Jacket Stampede (27.91), and the Cornhusker College Rodeo (29.69). The sophomore will be making her first career appearance at the CNFR with the momentum of back-to-back titles at the Will Lantis Yellow Jacket Stampede and the Cornhusker College Rodeo to end the regular season. 

Giving Black Hills State a 1-2 finish in the Great Plains Region in barrel racing, Steele was the regional runner-up in the event with 513 points as she secured her fourth appearance at the CNFR, and second as a Yellow Jacket. The senior has secured four top-5 finishes on the season, with second place finishes at the Mid-Plains Community College Stampede Rodeo #2 (36.28) and the Will Lantis Yellow Jacket Stampede (28.02) and was fourth place at the Mid-Plains Community College Stampede Rodeo #1 (18.32 – 1 Go) and the Cornhusker College Rodeo (30.23). 

Ohm will make her third career appearance at the CNFR by way of the Yellow Jackets qualifying as a team with a second place finish in the region standings. The senior breakaway roper finished fourth in the event in the Great Plains Region, accumulating 290 points by way of four top-6 finishes this season. She earned a third place finish at the Triton Stampede (6.0), a fourth place finish at the Mid-Plains Community College Stampede Rodeo #2 (8.0) and the Mystic Stampede (6.5), and a sixth place finish at the Mid-Plains Community College Stampede Rodeo #1 (3.1 – 1 Go). 

Husted also earned a return trip to the CNFR, her second career appearance, via the team qualifying as the Yellow Jackets were runners-up in the Great Plains Region. The graduate student recorded a fourth place finish in the region’s goat tying standings, accumulating 536 points with six top-6 finishes and one event title. She earned a title in the event at the Jackrabbit Stampede (13.2), a third place finish at the Mid-Plains Community College Stampede Rodeo #1 (7.4 – 1 Go), a fourth place finish at the Will Lantis Yellow Jacket Stampede (13.4), tied for fourth place at the Triton Stampede (14.3), was sixth place at both the Falcon Frontier Days Rodeo (15.5) and the Mystic Stampede (15.0), and was tenth at the Cornhusker College Rodeo (17.0). She enters the CNFR with three consecutive top-10 finishes to end the regular season at the Jackrabbit Stampede, Will Lantis Yellow Jacket Stampede, and the Cornhusker College Rodeo. 

–BHSU