As Fresno State junior Emma Jensen and her horse, Flash, competed in the barrel racing event at the recent College National Finals Rodeo, her mother, Kristie, was equally focused.

The former pro rodeo rider had been teaching her daughter how to ride and race horses since Emma could barely walk. Now she was watching her compete June 21 against the nation’s best collegians in the event’s final round in Casper, Wyoming. 

After weaving in and around three barrels about 100 feet apart, the younger Jensen darted back to the finish line in a time of 14.15 seconds.

That time moved Jensen up two places to ninth place in the barrel racing final standings and stood as the fastest of her four efforts at the event.

“I was super happy with how my horse performed,” Jensen said, ”and he is so calm in these stressful settings. I know my mom was equally excited. Our whole family is involved with raising and working with horses on our ranch, so it was special traveling there together and having them there.”

Earlier in the week, the Prather native had clocked preliminary times of 14.48, 14.67 and 14.58 seconds. Together, they earned her a spot in the 12-person final round and helped give her a combined time of 57.88 seconds.

Jensen’s finish also helped the Fresno State women’s team place 34th overall, and stood as the women’s team’s best individual placing since then-freshman Brittany Dias placed second in breakaway roping in 2016.

For the Jensen family, it was extra special since her mother had helped breed, raise and train Flash at their ranch in Prather. The horse’s bloodlines were tied to its mother, Cash, which Kristie Jensen rode to California Circuit top rookie honors in 2007 and strong placings in a host of barrel racing events throughout Central California.

As a teenager, Emma first began to ride Flash regularly as he rehabbed from a severe broken leg, and they have raced together ever since. As a freshman and junior at Fresno State, she traveled with him to college events throughout California and Nevada for a 10-event season each fall and spring.

Looking ahead, the recent race is likely the last of Jensen’s collegiate career, although she has a year of eligibility left. 

A Smittcamp Family Honors College student and College of Health and Human Services Honors Program member, she is ready to focus on completing her nursing degree the next two years. She had likewise focused solely on schoolwork as a sophomore, and knows the next two years will be even more demanding. 

“Being a part of the team at Fresno State has been great,” Jensen said, ”and Coach [Uhuru] Adem has been a strong supporter. I look forward to maybe staying involved in rodeos locally, whether it’s an occasional jackpot event, or whatever my family’s ranch is involved with.”

Also competing for the Fresno State women’s team at the college finale, sophomore Sage Pearce (of Santa Maria) placed 33rd in breakaway roping after she scored a time of 12.7 seconds and 11.8 seconds on her first and third preliminary efforts. She also competed at the same event last year. 

Both athletes earned invites to the national rodeo based on second-place West Coast Region season rankings. They led the women’s team to a third-place regional finish in May, one place shy of a national team invitation. 

In the national regular season rankings, each ranked top 15 nationally as individuals — Jensen in barrel racing (10th) and Pearce in breakaway roping (14th).

Four other men’s student-athletes also competed at the event in Wyoming.

In his third trip to the collegiate finale, junior Tyler Jones (of Friant) placed 26th in team roping after he scored a time of 6.2 seconds in the opening round. He also competed in saddle bronc riding but didn’t score in his three preliminary efforts and tied for 37th place.

Jones’ points in team roping helped the men’s team place 45th overall with 55 points.

Among the men’s team members making the event debuts, sophomore Tanner Kerr (Red Bluff) added 36th place in team roping with a mark of 12.3 seconds in his first preliminary rounds. He added 38th place in steer wrestling after he clocked a time of 24.2 seconds in the third preliminary round, and 32nd in tie-down roping with times of 21.5 and 11.9 seconds in the first and third preliminary rounds.

Fellow Fresno State newcomer, junior Brayden Liberio (of Caliente) tied for 15th place in bull riding after he failed to score in his three preliminary attempts.

Senior Wilson Redfeairn (of Bakersfield) did not score in the preliminary attempts in team roping and tied for 40th overall.

In national regular season rankings, Jones stood third in team roping and 22nd in the all-around category. Kerr also ranked top 11 overall in team roping (seventh), steer wrestling (eighth) and all-around (11th), as did Liberio in bull riding (ninth). 

Fresno State qualified a men’s team for the third time under seventh-year head coach Uhuru Adem. The squad finished second in the West Coast Region in the regular season final standings and 23rd nationally.

Under his guidance at the national finale, the men’s team placed No. 13 in 2022 and No. 17 in 2019 at the event, while the women’s team finished No. 19 in 2022.

Regular season individual and team standings and event results are available at the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association website.

On-demand replays from each day are available on ESPN3, and an ESPNU recap of the event will air at 5 p.m. Monday, Aug. 18, and noon Friday, Aug. 22.

The Fresno State rodeo program started in 1946 and officially became a club in 1949 — the same year the first collegiate national finals were held in San Francisco. More information on the team is available on its Facebook and Instagram pages.