Malone top roper from Friday

When tie-down roper Mason Malone watched Weston Crane's ride, he wasn't sure his time would hold up.

But Malone's 9.2 was just quick enough to beat out Crane, who finished with a 9.3, to give Malone the best time of Friday night's performance in the 67th Annual Yuma Jaycees Silver Spur Rodeo.

“I was holding my breath, he was looking like (his time) was going to be in the eights,” said Malone, a 20-year old from Ramona, Calif.

Joseph Parsons leads all riders with a time of 7.6 he got in Thursday's slack performance and Cutter Parsons notched a 8.1.

David Heimbach, the only rider in the first performance from Yuma, had a time of 10.9.

In saddle-bronc riding, 20-year old Cody Hendren (Albuquerque, N.M.) is in the top spot with a 62, despite riding with a torn calf muscle.

“(My performance) was pretty bad, to be honest,” Hendren said. “I wasn't spurring the way I would have liked.”

Steer wrestler Taylor Nahrgang (Buckeye, Ariz.) posted the best time in night performance with a 5.7, despite admittedly making some technical mistakes.

“I could have done better, but it's a man's event, so if you make some technical mistakes, you can make up with it with muscle,” said Nahrgang, who is tied for third place behind Jacob Antone (5.0) and Pepe Arballo (5.5).

Levi Lewis and Brent Tyon are tied with Rhett Kennedy and Paul Mollin with a time of 5.9 in team roping, right ahead of Blake Hirdes and Eric Cozzitorto's 6.0. In barrel racing, the second rider, Lindsey Hampton (Phelan, Calif.), had her time of 17.72 hold up and had the best time of Friday night's performance.

In the final event, bull rider Corey Rickard was one of three riders to make it the full eight seconds and finished with a top score of 84.

There will be two performances today — the first starting at 1 p.m. and another at 7 p.m. The rodeo's popular parade begins this morning at 8 a.m. at the corner of 4th Avenue and 15th Street.