SWTJC Cowgirl Taylor Lawson gets special surprise
The following information was submitted by Sugar Almand, SWTJC Rodeo Contributor.
Uvalde, TX, November 5, 2021 - SWTJC Cowgirl Taylor Lawson, who broke an arena record last summer at the College National Finals Rodeo, led the SWTJC Women’s team to a reserve championship title during the 59th Annual SWTJC Rodeo Finals on Oct. 2.
Lawson was crowned the event’s All-Around Cowgirl after finishing second in round one of the barrel races with a 16.99, 10th in the team roping average heading, and winning the event’s breakaway roping in front of a packed house.
She finished second in round one Oct. 1 with a rapid 1.9 second run, first in the short round with a blistering 1.8 and first in the average to seal the event title win. Immediately after, coach Joey Almand was waiting with a special gift.
“Last summer in Casper, Wyoming at the CNFR, Taylor broke a long-standing arena record in the breakaway roping,” said Almand. “When she did, she not only put herself on the map, but she really put our town of Uvalde and Southwest Texas Junior College and its rodeo program in
the spotlight. My wife and I talked about it and decided to go to the stock contractor in Casper and try to buy the calf she roped to present to her during our rodeo.”
Lawson who has a little cowherd of her own in New Waverly knew nothing of the plans.
“The calf she set the record on was a nice black, white-faced heifer that we knew would one day make a good producing cow for Taylor,” said Almand’s wife Sugar.
“It was quite a feat getting that calf from Wyoming to south Texas. The contractor wanted to continue to use her throughout the summer at his contracted rodeos. I was nervous all summer that something might happen to her and our plan would be foiled. We kept contacting them and checking in on her. She was hauled to several other states throughout the summer South Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas. We literally didn’t know for certain we would even be able to get
her bought and to Uvalde for the presentation until the Tuesday prior.”
The calf arrived just in time to be presented to Lawson in front of a full house during the recognition of all six of the SWTJC athletes that had qualified last year for the College National Finals.
While getting the calf to Uvalde was a challenge, keeping her a secret was equally difficult.
“One thing we have always tried to do since we started at SWTJC, is to go the extra mile—for our college, our community and our athletes. We really want our athletes to know how important they are to our college and our supportive community. It absolutely came from the heart—a token of what setting that record did for all of us in Uvalde. There is no way to measure what Taylor’s performance last summer in Casper did for us as new coaches, our growing rodeo program and the people who encourage us.”