OCALA, Fla. – The No. 1 Auburn equestrian team dropped a close contest Friday in a semifinal match up at the 2026 NCEA Championships, falling to No. 4 South Carolina, 11-8, at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Florida.
“It was a highly competitive meet and the scores were very close,” head coach Jessica Braswell said. “I’m so proud of this team and how they rode today. I told them that if we had to do it over again, I wouldn’t change anything because we really put it all out there. I’m really proud regardless of the outcome.”
It was a tight contest all morning with some match ups being decided by less than half a point.
“The reality is that at the end of the season, only one team gets to leave happy,” Braswell said. “It didn’t go how we wanted to today, but they need to be proud leaving this place. This team is too good and I feel like we put in good performances here in Ocala.”
With the loss, the Tigers finished the season with a 10-4 record.
The Gamecocks took an early lead in the first half after Fences and Reining, going into the break with a 6-4 lead.
Auburn picked up two points in Fences from junior Avery Glynn and sophomore Ariana Marnell. The pair both scored an 88.3 to top their opponents.
It was a tight contest in Reining and the Tigers earned a pair of points from freshman Sofia Tieche and senior Alexia Tordoff. Tieche, of Ocala, Florida, opened the event with a 71.2-70.5 win and was followed by a 73-72.3 victory from Tordoff. South Carolina captured the final three match ups by a combined 1.6 points.
Following the break, the Tigers and the Gamecocks battled in Flat and saw tight scoring throughout. South Carolina won the first three match ups by a combined 3.4 points before Glynn gave the Tigers a big point, winning 90.7-87. Marnell capped the event with an 88.3-77 victory.
Horsemanship was led by two upperclassmen in Tordoff and junior Callie Hogg. Tordoff had a match-best 77.2 in her one-point victory, while Hogg capped the day with a 75.7-73.5 win.
#4 SOUTH CAROLINA 11, #1 AUBURN 8
FENCES
Amira Kettaneh (SC) def. Emily Jurnovoy (AU), 85-82.3
Grace Rabb (SC) def. Caroline Olsen (AU), 82-80.7
Ariana Marnell (AU) def. Bella Primavera (SC), 88.3-86
Avery Glynn (AU) def. Alyssa Bauer (SC), 88.3-81.3
Natalie Jayne (SC) def. Kate Hagerty (AU), 88.3-86.3
FLAT
Vanessa McCaughley (SC) def. Sadie Berkhout (AU), 77.3-77
Natalie Jayne (SC) def. Caroline Olsen (AU), 89.7-88
Amira Kettaneh (SC) def. Kate Hagerty (AU), 89.7-88.3
Avery Glynn (AU) def. Sarah Rabb (SC), 90.7-87
Ariana Marnell (AU) def. Mary Hunter Millet (SC), 88.3-77
HORSEMANSHIP
Caroline Fredenburg (AU) tied Carly Jenkins (SC), 75.2-75.2
Lillian Laney (SC) def. Brooke Jolstad (AU), 70.7-61.2
Alexis Potts (SC) def. Sydney Swallom (AU), 76.7-74.5
Alexia Tordoff (AU) def. Alyssa Jipping (SC), 77.2-76.2
Callie Hogg (AU) def. Ruby Voortmeyer (SC), 75.7-72.5
REINING
Sofia Tieche (AU) def. Opal Fomish (SC), 71.2-70.5
Alexia Tordoff (AU) def. Emily Patton (SC), 73-72.3
Alexis Potts (SC) def. Caroline Buchanan (AU), 71-70.8
Mattilyn McNeill (SC) def. Michelle Fumagalli (AU), 70.8-70.5
Olivia Cardi (SC) def. Callie Hogg (AU), 72.3-71.2
No. 1 Auburn falls to No. 4 South Carolina in NCEA Semifinal
The No. 1 Auburn equestrian team dropped a close contest Friday in a semifinal match up at the 2026 NCEA Championships, falling to No. 4 South Carolina, 11-8, at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Florida.
