A love for horses and a passion for rodeo has taken Halle Cummings of Siloam Springs to the top of her sport.
On Monday, the 16-year-old was ranked No. 1 in senior girls breakaway roping and trail course by the National Little Britches Rodeo Association, and was ranked second in goat tying, fourth in pole bending and 13th in barrel racing.
While rankings change from week to week as rodeos take place across the country, Cummings has held the top spots for about a month, according to her grandpa, Johnny McCollough. National point rankings are posted on the organization's website, nlbra.com.
NLBRA, which serves kids age 5 to 18, sanctions more than 500 youth rodeos in 33 states, providing members a chance to earn points and qualify for the NLBRA National Finals Rodeo, the website states. More than 2,600 kids compete in NLBRA events each year and contestants can earn prizes such as saddles, buckles, scholarships and cash, it states. The NLBRA rodeo season begins in August and ends with the national competition in early July, Cummings said.
This isn't the first time that Cummings has been in the top 10 of national rankings. In 2016, she held the No. 2 spot in several events and has been in the top 10 several times since, McCollough said. She has also won plenty of saddles, buckles and prize money at local and regional rodeos, including an all-around saddle from the Ozark Junior Regional Rodeo Association and a barrel saddle from Marchant Arena competitions.
On Sept. 26, she brought home $560 in winnings from the women's rodeo at Cedar Tree Arena in Kansas, Okla., including $376 for a first place in breakaway roping for a time of 3.2 seconds, McCollough said.
Cummings said breakaway roping is her favorite event. During the timed competition, a calf is roped by a single rider but not thrown and tied. She spends at least an hour and a half to two hours practicing on her horses each night and is gone to rodeos in locations such as Oklahoma and Texas on most weekends, she said.
Now that Cummings is older, she does almost all the work to care for her eight horses herself, McCollough said. Currently, Cummings is teaching lessons to younger students and has taken a horse into training, which helps her earn enough money to pay for her own entry fees, he said. Many older girls helped her out and she wants to pay it forward, she said.
Cummings started riding at age seven at the Oak Grove Arena in Highfill, competing in playdays and learning from older members, she said. She began roping two years ago, she said.
"She is winning our senior division and our hearts," said Stephanie McKenna, Oak Grove Riding Club president.
Cummings often rides completely bareback while competing in events at Oak Grove Arena or doing queening runs with a flag in her hand, MkKenna said. She has also been bringing a couple of her own riding students to ride at the club, passing her knowledge on to the next generation, she said.
"She is always the first to volunteer to help," McKenna said. "She is very kind, very sweet, she's got ideas and is always trying to help the club. She's got a lot going for her and for her to still make time for the club is kinda cool."
McCullough is an "unsung hero" of the club who spends hours taking care of the arena and tractor so that other kids can have the same opportunities that Cummings has, said Brittney Sisson, club secretary.
"Every Friday, they have a playday and grandpa takes a lot of pride in driving that tractor because he knows this is where I started and it helps a lot of their kids if we keep it running," Cummings said.
Outside of rodeo, Cummings is also very involved in the Siloam Springs FFA Club, where she holds the office of parliamentarian and competes on the horse judging team, she said. Cummings is working on several supervised agricultural experience projects related to horses in FFA, according to advisor Kendra Woodlee.
"She is a great rider and very passionate about rodeo," Woodlee said.
In the future, Cummings hopes to earn rodeo scholarships and attend Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College before going to Oklahoma State University to study either veterinary medicine or Ag business, she said.