By PC Frenchmans Hayday and out of Miss Meter Jet, by Bar Tonto Jet, Stingray is no stranger to the Thomas & Mack Arena and neither is Cervi, herself a 15-time Wrangler NFR qualifier. The duo teamed up to post a rapid 13.67, the fastest time of the rodeo thus far, to seal the win by a tight margin over Stephenville, Texas cowgirl, Carlee Pierce, who rode Rare Dillion (“Dillion”) to a time of 13.75 seconds.
“It feels great anytime you can win a go round at the NFR. It’s awesome,” stated Cervi following her run. “I’m just grateful to be standing here tonight and I’m just going to try to keep going fast. Fortunately with Stingray it seems like the more runs you make on her, the better she gets. We’ll continue to try to keep getting better.”
Round by pivotal round, the story of the Wrangler NFR average is unfolding. Benette Barrington-Little, Ardmore, Okla., leads the aggregate with a time on four runs of 55.81 seconds. In an unfortunate turn of events, fan favorites, Mary Walker and Perculatin (“Latte”), tipped the second barrel, which took them from second in the average race to sixth. World standings leader Brittany Pozzi hit two costly barrels, which took her to 13th in the aggregate. Cervi holds down second in the aggregate with a cumulative time of 55.91 seconds, while Kaley Bass is third with 56.28 seconds on four runs.
Defending WPRA World champion Lindsay Sears and Sugar Moon Express (“Martha”) posted a 13.81 for third, while Lisa Lockhart’s time of 13.82 aboard An Oakie With Cash (“Louie”) was good for fifth, and Kelli Tolbert and RF Firefly (“Cleo”) took sixth with a time of 13.97.
With the race for the WPRA World title heating up, Walker now trails Pozzi by $4,504.16. The Wrangler NFR average, which is worth $46,821 to the champion, opened up tonight with five ladies remaining penalty-free.
Barrel Racing Results – 4th Go Round:
1. Sherry Cervi 13.67 $18,257.21
2. Carlee Pierce 13.75 $14,429.09
3. Lindsay Sears 13.81 $10,895.43
4. Lisa Lockhart 13.82 $7,656.25
5. Kaley Bass 13.90 $4,711.54
6. Kelli Tolbert 13.97 $2,944.71
Wrangler NFR Barrel Racing Average Standings:
1. Benette Barrington-Little, Ardmore, Okla., 55.81
2. Sherry Cervi, Marana, Ariz., 55.91
3. Kaley Bass, Kissimmee, Fla., 56.28
4. Nikki Steffes, Vale, S.D., 56.42
5. Brenda Mays, Terrebonne, Ore., 56.78
6. Mary Walker, Ennis, Texas, 60.14
7. Kelli Tolbert, Hooper, Utah, 60.39
8. Lindsay Sears, Nanton, Alberta, 60.47
9. Lee Ann Rust, Stephenville, Texas, 60.77
10. Lisa Lockhart, Oelrichs, S.D., 61.00
11. Trula Churchill, Valentine, Neb., 61.10
12. Christy Loflin, Franktown, Colo., 62.37
13. Brittany Pozzi, Victoria, Texas, 66.10
14. Christina Richman, Glendora, Calif., 68.62
15. Carlee Pierce, Stephenville, Texas, 86.64
WPRA World Championship Standings:
(Through 4th Go Round)
1. Brittany Pozzi Victoria, Texas $186,567.97
2. Mary Walker (G) Ennis, Texas $182,063.81
3. Lindsay Sears Nanton, Alberta $167,387.35
4. Carlee Pierce Stephenville, Texas $138,949.23
5. Sherry Cervi Marana, Arizona $119,367.62
6. Kelli Tolbert Hooper, Utah $95,484.01
7. Kaley Bass Kissimmee, Florida $90,993.26
8. Nikki Steffes Vale, South Dakota $89,666.27
9. Benette Barrington-Little Ardmore, Oklahoma $87,926.89
10. Lisa Lockhart Oelrichs, South Dakota $85,221.73
11. Brenda Mays Terrebonne, Oregon $81,798.97
12. Lee Ann Rust Stephenville, Texas $78,519.30
13. Christina Richman Glendora, California $60,872.07
14. Trula Churchill Valentine, Nebraska $60,777.29
15. Christy Loflin Franktown, Colorado $59,563.10
