WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Competing in front of a home crowd for the first time, the Carolina Cowboys delivered a 2-1 performance in game play, while also winning the Bonus Round, at PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Cowboy Days, to conclude the Team Series event in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, as the No. 1-ranked team in the league.

Beginning the event No. 3 in the league standings, the Cowboys rose to No. 2 following their commanding Friday night win against the Missouri Thunder. Backed by key scores from Mason Taylor, Cooper Davis and Wingson Henrique da Silva, the Cowboys won 261.5-0.

The Cowboys then overtook the No. 1 spot with a walk-off win against the Arizona Ridge Riders Saturday night. Courtesy of an evening-best, 87.75-point score from Daylon Swearingen atop Jailhouse Cat (Clark View Farms/Phillips), the Cowboys completed the come-from-behind victory to beat the Ridge Riders 265.5-169.5.

On Championship Sunday, however, the Cowboys’ six-game win streak came to an end in a thriller, when they were narrowly beaten by the Nashville Stampede by 1.5 points, falling 257.75-259.25.

In true cowboy fashion, Carolina rebounded in the Bonus Round. For the fifth time this season, the Cowboys dominated, collecting a maximum 8 Bonus points, courtesy of Taylor’s massive 89.75-point trip atop Duke (Sho-Me Rodeo).

The Carolina Cowboys concluded their inaugural homestand second, having gone 2-1 in game play and earning 8 bonus points. They are No. 1 in the league with a 10-6 record and 46 combined bonus points and lead the No. 2 Austin Gamblers, who also hold a 10-6 record, by 9.5 bonus points.

No team in Winston-Salem, however, rivaled the Oklahoma Freedom, who went a perfect 3-0 in game play and finished second in the Bonus Round to win their first PBR Team Series event at PBR Cowboy Days.

The Oklahoma Freedom began the event with a bang, knocking off the Nashville Stampede 261-0 compliments of a lead-off 90-point ride from third-round draft pick Chase Outlaw.

In just his second event, Outlaw faced a familiar opponent in Big Black (K-C Bucking Bulls/Joe & Nina Webb). Having met five times prior, Outlaw entered the slugfest with a perfect record, marked 90 points or more in each out. Keeping the streak alive, Outlaw logged just the fifth 90-point ride in PBR Team Series history, dominating the powerful animal athlete for 90.25 points. The score is tied for third best in the league and ties the Freedom with the Carolina Cowboys for most 90-point scores by one team, each with two.

The Oklahoma Freedom remained red-hot as competition continued Saturday, upsetting the Austin Gamblers 86.75-83.25.

Keen to remain perfect in game play with their inaugural homestand just days away, the Freedom faced the Kansas City Outlaws on Championship Sunday. Both teams entered the showdown with a 2-0 record at PBR Cowboy Days.

Backed by crucial scores from both Briggs Madsen and Captain Eli Vastbinder, the Freedom defeated the Outlaws by one ride score, 170.75-87.

As the only team to go a perfect 3-0 in game play, the Freedom entered the Bonus Round with the event win already clinched. Seeking crucial bonus points, Freedom Head Coach Cord McCoy elected to have Derek Kolbaba go head-to-head with Jeremiah (Martinez Bucking Bulls, LLC).

In a decision which proved dividends, Kolbaba conquered the animal athlete for 88.75 points, the second-best score of the Bonus Round, garnering the team 7 Bonus points.

Courtesy of the 3-0 performance, and their 7 Bonus points, the Freedom rose to No. 5 in the league standings, now with an 8-8 record and a combined 22 Bonus points.

The PBR Team Series will next travel to Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, for the fifth team-hosted homestand as the Oklahoma Freedom welcome the league for PBR Freedom Fest. The event will be on Friday, September 16 at 7:45 p.m. CT, Saturday, September 17 at 6:45 p.m. CT and Sunday, September 18 at 1:45 p.m. CT.

The game matchups for the opening night of competition in Oklahoma City on September 16 are:

Nashville Stampede @ Missouri Thunder
Arizona Ridge Riders @ Carolina Cowboys
Kansas City Outlaws @ Texas Rattlers
Austin Gamblers @ Oklahoma Freedom

PBR RidePass on Pluto TV will offer replays of all the PBR Team Series action from Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Check https://pluto.tv/en/live-tv/pbr-ridepass for the latest programming schedule.

Nashville Stampede: 259.25

Carolina Cowboys: 257.75

The final game of the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Team Series event in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, pitted the winless league No. 8 Nashville Stampede against the No. 1, and host, Carolina Cowboys, who had yet to lose at their home event.

In a David versus Goliath-style showdown, the Stampede knocked off the Cowboys at home, eking out the win by 1.5 points 259.25-257.75. The see-saw game featured both teams going a commanding 3-for-5, covering 60% of the showdown’s bovine athletes.

In the opening frame, Nashville was quick to convert, as 2018 PBR World Champion and first-round draft pick Kaique Pacheco (Itatiba, Brazil) covered YETI’S Big Poison (Cowtown Rodeo) for 87.75 points.

While the Cowboys logged a score in the very next out, 2016 PBR World Champion Cooper Davis’ (Jasper, Texas) 87-point ride aboard Whiplash (Blake Sharp/Floyd Lowery/CB & Traci Lee) was not enough to give his team the lead.

As the second got underway, Manoelito de Souza Junior (Itamira, Brazil) stumbled for the Stampede, and Boudreaux Campbell (Crockett, Texas) was awarded a re-ride after Chief (Blake Sharp/Michael Floyd) fell during his trip.

As the game approached the midway point, the Stampede registered their second-consecutive buckoff when Ryan Dirteater (Hulbert, Oklahoma) was upended by Apper’s Mind Freak (Jo-Z Bucking Bulls/K-C Bucking Bulls/Spark-Lin-Acres) in a close 5.94 seconds.

The Cowboys rebounded, as Mason Taylor (Maypearl, Texas) gave Carolina its first lead in the bottom of the third. In perfect time with Siroucho (Dozier Cattle Co./Martinez Bucking Bulls), Taylor reached the requisite 8 for 86.25 points to put Carolina ahead by 85.5 points.

Matt Triplett (Canton, South Dakota) then righted the tide for the Stampede in the top of the fourth, conquering Contusion (Sho-Me Rodeo) for 86.5 points to put Nashville back out front of Carolina by a slim 1-point.

With both Wingson Henrique da Silva (Navirai, Brazil) failing to make the 8, and Campbell bucking off his re-ride, the game came down to the fifth.

For the second time during PBR Cowboy Days, three-time PBR World Champion Silvano Alves (Pilar do Sul, Brazil) was in a must-ride position as the closer for the Stampede. After his qualified ride was not enough to push the Stampede past the Thunder Saturday evening, he was determined to settle for nothing less than a win in his crucial out Sunday afternoon.

Rising to the occasion, Alves rode Prime Tested (Blake Sharp/Travis Austin/Koe Wetzel) for a critical 85 points to give his team an increased 86-point lead ahead of Carolina’s final out.

Like Alves, 2022 PBR World Champion Daylon Swearingen (Piffard, New York) was also in a must-ride position for the second-consecutive evening.

Initially paired with Cooter Brown (Lucas Manning/Waller Brothers Cattle Co.), Swearingen was awarded a re-ride when the bull fell towards the end of the out. In a manner that seemed straight from a move script, Swearingen’s re-ride partner was none other than Jailhouse Cat (Clark View Farms/Phillips), the very bull he rode Saturday evening to earn the Cowboys a walk-off win against the Arizona Ridge Riders. While Swearingen again covered the bull, the out immediately went into review. The trip was confirmed to be a qualified ride, but Swearingen was awarded just 84.5 points, not enough to clinch the victory for Carolina.

When the dust settled, Nashville won its first game of PBR Cowboy Days, defeating the host Cowboys by 1.5 points, 259.25-257.75. The win snapped a six-game losing streak and improved Nashville to 1-2 at PBR Cowboy Days and 4-12 this season. Carolina concluded their homestand having gone 1-2, now with a 10-6 season record.

Photo courtesy of Andy Watson/Bull Stock Media