ALVA, Okla. – The last two loops might be the most memorable.

Northwestern Oklahoma State University team roping graduate students Jacob Haren and Rhett Murray made the most of their final intercollegiate run together this past Saturday during the championship round of the Oklahoma Panhandle State University rodeo in Guymon, Oklahoma.

They stopped the clock in 6.0 seconds to not only win the short round but also the title at Henry C. Hitch Pioneer Arena and waving goodbye to their years as Rangers.

“It feels good to go out that way,” said Murray, the heeler originally from Alma, Kansas, but now living in Alva with a bachelor’s degree ag business and a master’s in business administration. “I’ve placed at a lot of rodeos, but I’ve never won one. That’s also my favorite rodeo to rope at since we get to rope muleys. I was glad I was able to come back to school at Alva to get my master’s degree and still rodeo.”

Muleys are hornless cattle, which is atypical in team roping. Most often, the header will try to secure a cow’s horns to make for a better handle for his heeler to help stop the clock. Not only that, but the cattle used in Guymon had never been run in a rodeo, so they were fresh off the range. That just adds to the uniqueness of the experience.

“We’ve kind of struggled this year, so it was pretty good to bring it together at the last one and have one of our best runs,” said Haren of Callaway, Nebraska. “We both rope muleys all the time back home, so we’re pretty used to it.”

Haren and Murray led the way for the Rangers, who finished third in the men’s team race in Guymon, but they weren’t alone. Tie-down roper Hazen Sparks of Talihina, Oklahoma, finished tied for third in the long round but was saddled with a no-time in the championship. Steer wrestler Emmett Edler of State Center, Iowa, placed in both rounds and finished fifth overall.

Edler won the Central Plains Region’s bulldogging title, and the points he earned in the Oklahoma Panhandle helped him to finish second in the all-around standings. He will advance to the College National Finals Rodeo in June, and with that reserve title in hand, will also be able to compete in tie-down roping in Casper, Wyoming.

Breakaway roper Katie Ayres of Canby, Oregon, finished tied for fifth in the first round after posting a 3.2-second run. She was joined in the short round by fellow breakaway roper Y’Leigh Yarbrough of Cheyenne, Oklahoma; goat-tier Bennett McComas of Mandan, North Dakota; and barrel racer Addey Lawson of Maysville, Kentucky.

Team roper Colter Snook of Dodge City, Kansas, finished second in the heading standings, and Payton Dingman of Pryor, Oklahoma, finished third in goat-tying. They will join Edler in Casper in a few weeks, but the weekend belonged to the two grad students,.

“What a strong finish for these two,” coach Cali Griffin said of Haren and Murray. “I couldn’t be happier for them. I had to do some real convincing to get these two back for their grad year, but I knew how much our team could benefit from them.

“I love the cattle at Guymon. When they bring in the walking fresh in everything and the muleys in team roping, I think it brings out the true horseman and shows who can really handle a rope. You’d be hard-pressed to find any two that work harder at their horsemanship and roping. Before the short-go, I told Haren that I knew this year wasn’t going to end like we’d hoped, so they might as well go out on a high note, and they did.”

Now, it’s time both take the next steps in their lives. Some of that will involve rodeo, but whatever they do will be influenced by being a cowboy. Murray, for example, will continue to shoe horses, raise cows and train horses. That’s what cowboys do, whether they’re in the Flint Hills of Kansas, the Sandhills of Nebraska or the Plains in Woods County, Oklahoma.

“My hope is that in a few years I’ll have a nice cattle operation and be successful in whatever I’m doing,” Murray said. “When I came to school here, I didn’t think I’d ever stay around Alva, but I’ll probably be a lifer here.”