In a season when the Aggies looked untouchable, routing an eight-meet win streak, including five wins against ranked opponents, A&M looked to bounce back after a tough loss to now-No. 2 Auburn.
The No. 3 Texas A&M equestrian team defeated No. 7 SMU 11-8 on March 5 at the Dallas Equestrian Center.
The struggles from the Feb. 26 loss carried over into the first two events of the day for the maroon and white, as they dropped Flat and Horsemanship to face an early 6-4 deficit.
Despite senior Caroline Dance giving a career-high performance of 95 in Equitation on the Flat, the Mustangs were able to capture three points in the event through junior Miranda Seade, sophomore Taylor Madden and senior Madigan Eppink. Seade would go on to win Most Outstanding Player, or MOP, honors for the event.
There was no better luck for A&M in Horsemanship, as SMU won the event by a score of 3-2 with sophomore Nya Kearns winning MOP.
The Aggies would come into the second half with a new mindset, as they went on to outscore SMU by a score of 7-2 in the remaining events.
A&M junior Kaitlyn Lovingfoss, senior Grace Boston and sophomore Devon Thomas secured three-straight points in Fences, and the Aggies took the lead 8-7. Lovingfoss secured MOP for the event, marking her second time winning the honor this season.
With a one-point lead heading into the final event of the day, the Aggies were able to secure the victory behind points from junior Emmy-Lu Marsh, sophomore Keesa Luers and senior Lisa Bricker in Reigning. Luers would go on to win her first MOP as an Aggie in the event with a score of 74.
For the second-straight meet, the Aggies trailed at the half. This week, the maroon and white were able to learn from the mistakes of the previous meet to lead an impressive comeback run.
“I’m very proud of the way our team won on the road. Out-of-conference road wins are especially challenging because we are not as familiar with the horses as we are with SEC opponents,” coach Tana McKay told 12thman.com. “The girls rose to the occasion. Our Reining and Fences groups really showed up today to only allow SMU to earn one point in each event. All around from our team and to fans that traveled, we had great support.”
With the victory, A&M improved to 10-2 with only two meets remaining before heading to Auburn, Ala., on March 25 for the SEC Championship. The Aggies will have a challenging remaining slate, however, as they face No. 1 Oklahoma State on March 12 in their final meet of the season.