Two Mid-Plains Community College Rodeo Team members won their events at the Nebraska State Fair on Monday, earning $1,000 worth of scholarship money in the process.

Reece Weber, of Valentine, was first in the team roping and Rowdy Moon, of Sargent, claimed the top spot in the bareback riding during the Nebraska High School/College Rodeo Showcase.

It was the second year for the event in Grand Island. The contestants consisted of a combination of Nebraska High School Rodeo Association members and rodeo team members from five colleges: MPCC, Chadron State College, the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture, Hastings College and the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

They competed in bareback riding, tie-down roping, steer wrestling, breakaway roping, saddle bronc riding, team roping, barrel racing and bull riding.

“There were high school rodeos over the Labor Day weekend at Nelson and Grand Island, and the top five individuals in the average from those got to compete in the showcase,” said Dustin Elliott, MPCC Rodeo Team rough stock coach. “Each college got to send one representative in each event.”

In addition to Weber and Moon, MPCC was represented by Rhett O’Connor, of Paxton;        Charmane and Shania Macomber, of Whitman; Shane Weber, of Burwell;   Kris Rasmussen, of Riverdale; Riley Weehler, of Maloy, Iowa and Sam Elliott, of Prineville, Ore.

The high school students competed against each other in a go-round, while the college contestants competed against each other in a separate go-round.

The winners of each event in each go-round received a $500 college scholarship and advanced to a “Showcase of Champions” round. At that point, it was high school students competing against college students for a chance at an extra $500 in scholarship money.

Reece and Moon won the Showcase of Champions, and each took home $1,000.

Elliott said the competition was good practice for the MPCC Rodeo Team, which will begin its fall season with the Falcon Frontier Days Rodeo in River Falls, Wis. on Friday and Saturday.