LIVINGSTON, Ala. - The University of West Alabama Rodeo team is set to host the annual UWA Rodeo Showdown this week, beginning on Thursday and concluding on Saturday.

Action is set to begin at 7:00 p.m. on all three nights with a Pre-Show slated to begin at 6:00 p.m. The gates at the Hines Spree Rodeo Complex will open at 5:30 p.m. 

"This is our favorite rodeo of the year," said head coach Daniel Poole.  "We tend to always do good at home, which I believe is largely due to all the support we receive." 

MEN'S RODEO
West Alabama men's squad enters their home rodeo after a fourth place finish at Missouri Valley College this past week. The Tigers totaled 280 points and were led by senior, Tyler Lovering. Lovering began his 2025-26 campaign with 125 points in the Tie Down Roping and will look to build on that performance this week. 

Tanner Brown, Kota Wilhite, and Stone Reeves are the leaders on West Alabama's Men's Team and are slated to make their presence known at the Showdown. Brown competes in the Tie Down and Team Roping events and will most likely be active in those events, beginning on Thursday. Brown's Team Roping partner, Clarke Gordon will also be a probable participant in both the Tie Down and Team Roping. 

As for Wilhite, he's one of the better Tie Down Ropers on the roster. The Graduate Student began his campaign with 90 points in the event last week. Reeves is also a talented Tie Down Roper and looks to find his rhythm in 2025-26 at the UWA Rodeo Showdown this weekend. 

Tiger fans are familiar with Lovering, Brown, Wilhite, Reeves, and will now get their first glimpse of newcomers Austin Brooks, Sam McBride, Eli Day, and Logan Crook.

WOMEN'S RODEO
UWA's Women's team will look to bounce back this weekend after failing to place at the Missouri Valley College Rodeo. Allie Sherman, Ashley Teems, and Summerlin O'Neal competed well as Sherman and Teems picked up 150 combined points in the Barrel Racing event while O'Neal registered 100 points in the Breakaway Roping. 

The Tigers made a plethora of additions to their roster over the offseason, giving head coach Daniel Poole a lot of pieces to West Alabama's puzzle. With a lot of new faces in the program, it's not uncommon for a team to struggle through their first Rodeo, and now with a weekend under their belt, the Tigers are slated for a much improved performance at the UWA Rodeo Showdown this weekend. 

Newcomers Erin McLaughlin, Darby Toole, Aubrey Mills, Madison Murphy, Andi Norwood, Avery Pilgrim, and Morgan Ward are set to make their introductions to their home crowd on Thursday, while veterans and leaders Sydney Poole, Katelyn Carney, Gabbie Hayes, Ty Fleming, and Millie Joe Rosenberg look to spread head the Tigers' efforts.

"Our team is ready and we added some additional things to our production, such as a leader board, more camera men & it will also be streamed on the Cowboy Channel App," coach continued. "We are hoping that it'll be the best home rodeo to date."

The 2025 UWA Rodeo Showdown is set to begin on Thursday at 7:00 p.m.