Mayfield, Schalla, Wanchuk Among Those Advancing To Cheyenne Frontier Days Finale

Friday’s first semifinal competition determined half of the field for Sunday’s upcoming short-go round at ‘The Daddy of ’Em All.’ The other half will be set during Saturday’s second semifinal round.

Wacey Schalla became the first bull rider to score more than 90 points at the 128th Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo, riding Dakota Rodeo’s Sneaky Situation for 91 points to win Friday's first semifinal and advance to championship Sunday. / Click Thompson/For PRCA

Wacey Schalla and Shad Mayfield are cowboys at very different points in their respective careers. 

Schalla is mere months removed from winning the all-round and bull riding college championships as he navigates his first year in the PRCA as a Resistol Rookie competitor in two roughstock events. 

Mayfield is a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association veteran, with five consecutive Wrangler National Final Rodeos to his credit and a tie-down roping world championship buckle among his numerous honors. 

There are two things they have in common – they’re both contending for the 2024 All-Around World Title and they’ll both be in the finals at Cheyenne (Wyo.) Frontier Days on Sunday. 

Schalla made his matchup with Dakota Rodeo bull Sneaky Situation count in a big way during Friday's first semifinal, scoring a 91-point ride to win the round and take home $3,076. It was the first 90-point or better bull ride of the rodeo. 

Wacey Schalla closes down Semifinal 1 in Cheyenne with 91 points on Dakota Rodeo's Sneaky Situation! pic.twitter.com/WGnlF6icgU

— The Cowboy Channel (@Cowboy_Channel) July 26, 2024

Mayfield continued his dominance in tie-down roping this season with a 10.1-second run during Friday’s first semifinal at Frontier Arena, securing another $5,200 in earnings and his spot in the finals. 

Mayfield and Schalla head into Sunday’s championship short-go ranked first and third in the PRCA All-Around World Standings, respectively. Mayfield has a firm grip on the lead with more than $186,000 in all-around earnings compared to approximately $82,000 for Scahlla, but the results from CFD could play a big role in shrinking or widening that margin. 

The second semifinal in Cheyenne will take place on Saturday at 1 p.m. MST. The top six finishers in each semifinal event from both days will come back on Sunday for the short-go at 1 p.m. MST. 

Several other big names were among the semifinal winners on Friday, including reigning team roping world champions Tyler Wade and Wesley Thorpe. The duo put together a run of 8.3 seconds to earn $5,200 heading into the finals. 

While Schalla’s 91-point bull ride made waves, he wasn’t the only roughstock athlete to go for 90. Saddle bronc rider Kolby Wanchuk notched a 90-point effort on Brookman Rodeo bucking horse Apollo to win the round and add $3,000 to his ledger. 

Recent college graduates Tayla Moeykens (barrel racing) and Kinlie Brennise didn’t back down from loaded competition in their respective events. Moeykens posted the fastest barrel racing time of the rodeo thus far, turning the cloverleaf pattern in a blazing 17 seconds flat to nab $5,375. It was the fastest run of the rodeo thus far.

𝟏𝟕 𝐅𝐋𝐀𝐓

The fastest run of the rodeo goes to Tayla Moeykens in Semifinal 1! pic.twitter.com/8TwDFIqbIc

— The Cowboy Channel (@Cowboy_Channel) July 26, 2024

With reigning world champion breakaway roper Shelby Boisjoii-Meged in her group, Brennise calmly finished her run in 3.9 seconds, making her the only cowgirl to go under four seconds on the day. That earned her $6,105.  Brennise also won her quarterfinal earlier in the week.

Denton Good was the other event winner of the day, finishing his steer wrestling run in 5.9 seconds to earn $4,060. A complete look at the results is below:

Bareback Riding: 1, Jacob Lees, 88.5 points on Fettig Pro Rodeo’s Hot Money,  $3.154. 2, (tie) Clint Laye and Lane McGehee, 87, $2,055 each. 4, (tie) Brayze Schill and R.C. Landingham, 82.5, $908 each. 6, Taylor Broussard, 84.5, $478.

Breakaway Roping: 1, Kinlie Brennise, 3.9 seconds, $6,105. 2, Chenoa VandeStouwe, 4.2, $4,625. 3, Shelby Boisjoli-Meged, 5.5, $3,330. 4, Jordan Jo Hollabaugh, 5.7, $2,200. 5, (tie) Kaydin Finan and Amanda Coleman, 6.0, $1,110 each.

Tie Down Roping: 1, Shad Mayfield, 10.1 seconds, $5,200. 2, Cash Fuez, 10.5, $4,300. 3, Cash Fretwell, 10.6, $3,400. 4, Tyler Milligan, 10.7, $2,500. 5, Dylan Hancock, 11.8, $1,600. 6, Chet Weitz, 13.7, $900.

Saddle Bronc Riding: 1, Kolby Wanchuk, 90 points on Brookman Rodeo’s Apollo, $3,035. 2, Lefty Holman, 88, $2,299. 3, Zeke Thurston, 86.5,  $1,655. 4, Chase Brooks, 85, $1,104. 5, Sage Newman, 84, $644. 6, Wyatt Casper, 83, $460.

Team Roping: 1, Tyler Wade and Wesley Thorp, 8.3 seconds, $5,200 each. 2, Wawa Ben Jr. and Brandon Ben, 8.6, $4,300 each. 3, Dawson and Dillon Graham, 9.1, $3,400 each. 4, Ed Shearer and Taylor Brower, 9.2, $2,500 each. 5, Hayes Smith and Justin Davis, 9.3, $1,600 each. 6, Clayton Van Aken and Culler Teller, 9.6, $900 each.

Steer Wrestling: 1, Denton Good, 5.9 seconds, $4,060. 2, Jacob Wang, 6.2, $3,360. 3, (tie) Caden Camp and Colton Swearingen, 6.5, $2,310 each.  5, (tie) Walt Arnold and Jeremy Burkhalter, 6.9, $980 each.

Barrel Racing: 1, Tayla Moeykens, 17.00 seconds, $5,375. 2, Tiffany Lujan, 17.27,  $4,449. 3, LaTricia Duke, 17.16, $3,522 . 4, Sabrina Ketcham, 17.33, $2,595. 5, Andrea Busby, 17.44, $1,668. 6, Sherry Cervi, 17.57, $927.

Bull Riding:  (four rides) 1, Wacey Schalla, 91 points on Dakota Rodeo’s Sneaky Situation, $3,076. 2, Jackson Ward, 87.5, $2,331 . 3, Brandon Ballard, $1,678 . 4, Hayes Weight, 50, $1,119.