AUBURN, Ala. – The No. 6 Auburn equestrian team fell to No. 3 SMU Saturday afternoon in a hard-fought, tightly-contested meet at the Auburn University Equestrian Center, 9-8.
The two teams battled back and forth for points before the Mustangs pulled away at the end. The Tigers took Fences (3-2) and Reining (2-1-2), while SMU edged Auburn in Flat (1-3-1) and Horsemanship (3-2).
"It was a tough loss today," head coach Jessica Braswell said. "Hats off to SMU because they rode really well on the road. I'm very proud of how our team rode. I thought that they brought it today and performed really well, having great rides. They stuck together and were in it until the very end. A big thank you to the Auburn fans who came out and supported us today."
The Tigers (6-5) won two of the four Most Outstanding Performer honors. Fifth year Ava Stearns earned the award in Flat, while senior Isabella Tesmer took MOP in Reining.
Auburn and the Mustangs competed in Flat and Reining to start the meet with SMU coming ahead 4-3 at intermission.
In Reining, Auburn went 2-1-2 against the Mustangs. Tesmer bested her opponent, 72.25-71.5, while classmate Kate Buchanan edged Dani Latimer, 71.25-70.5. Sophomores Alexia Tordoff and Caroline Buchanan each rode to a tie with Tordoff scoring a 67.5 in her match up and the younger Buchanan earned a 70.5.
Flat finished 1-3-1 against SMU, seeing Stearns win MOP with 86 points in her five-point victory. Senior Ellie Ferrigno rode to an 81.5-815 tie with Katy Merchant in the event.
The Fences corps came out with a 3-2 victory following intermission, starting with an 87.5-85.5 win for freshman Avery Glynn over Augusta Iwasaki. Junior Sophee Steckbeck improved to 11-0-0 in the event with an 84.5-78 win, while Stearns scored an 87 for another five-point win for the Tigers.
Auburn earned two points in Horsemanship from freshman Alexis Potts and sophomore Caroline Fredenburg. Potts bested her opponent, 73.25-68.75. Fredenburg closed out the meet with a 72-67 win.
Auburn concludes the regular season next weekend, hosting College of Charleston and nationally-ranked Texas A&M, March 8-9, at the Auburn University Equestrian Center.
The Tigers will take on College of Charleston on Friday, March 8 in a jumping seat-only contest beginning at 3 p.m. CT. Auburn and the Aggies will go head-to-head at 11 a.m. CT on March 9 and the Tigers will celebrate Senior Day prior to the start of the meet.
#3 SMU 9, #6 AUBURN 8
FENCES
Avery Glynn (AU) def. Augusta Iwasaki (SMU), 87.5-85.5
Hannah Hoch (SMU) def. Mary-Grace Segars (AU), 84.5-83.5
Sophee Steckbeck (AU) def. Taylor Madden (SMU), 84.5-78
Ava Stearns (AU) def. Hensley Humphries (SMU), 87-82
Elli Yeager (SMU)* def. Ellie Ferrigno (AU), 91.5-85.5
FLAT
Ava Stearns (AU)* def. Hensley Humphries (SMU), 86-81
Ellie Ferrigno (AU) tied Katy Merchant (SMU), 81.5-81.5
Taylor Madden (SMU) def. Mary-Grace Segars (AU), 83.5-82
Augusta Iwasaki (SMU) def. Sophee Steckbeck (AU), 79.5-76
Elli Yeager (SMU) def. Avery Glynn (AU), 79-78
HORSEMANSHIP
Alexis Potts (AU) def. Jayna Lagace (SMU), 73.25-68.75
Nya Kearns (SMU)* def. Alexia Tordoff (AU), 75.5-73
Alexa Black (SMU) def. Brooke Jolstad (AU), 72-70.5
Lily Anderson (SMU) def. Madison Parduhn (AU), 74.5-74.25
Caroline Fredenburg (AU) def. Caroline Nielson (SMU), 72-67
REINING
Taylor Zimmerman (SMU) def. Olivia Marino (AU), 68.75-68.25
Isabella Tesmer (AU) def. Shelby Clausen (SMU), 72.25-71.5
Alexia Tordoff (AU) tied Lily Anderson (SMU), 67.5-67.5
Kate Buchanan (AU) def. Dani Latimer (SMU), 71.25-70.5
Caroline Buchanan (AU) tied Chalyce Head (SMU), 70.5-70.5