After a regular season full of ups and downs, No. 6 seed Texas A&M equestrian faced off against No. 3 seed Oklahoma State in the quarterfinals and No. 7 seed Georgia in the semifinals of the Equestrian NCEA Championships. The Aggies won in a close battle over the Cowgirls with the final raw score being 10-10 (1568.75-1537.67), but got dominated by the Bulldogs in the semifinals, 16-4.
Quarterfinals against No. 3 Oklahoma State:
The Aggies started off hot in Fences, cruising to a 4-1 lead over the Cowgirls in the discipline. Sophomore Kate Egan, fifth year Devon Thomas, senior Brooke Brombach and sophomore Alida Treuting secured four points, with scores of 86, 80.7, 75 and 80.7 on Callisto, Presley, Zulu and Caramba. Oklahoma State managed to steal a point via senior Mackenzie Carreras, who scored an 83 on Schnitzel.
A&M kept its momentum running in the tournament, winning in Flat, 3-2. Graduate Maggie Nealon, sophomore Nicole McMillion and freshman Grace Shipman edged out the competition with three points, with scores of 71, 74.3 and 78.3. But the Cowgirls continued to fight, taking two points thanks to senior Riley Hogan and sophomore Bella Holway scoring 71.3 and 81.7 on Chunky and Major.
The Aggies would secure a 7-3 lead over the Cowgirls before heading into the next two events.
Something lit a fire for Oklahoma State as they dominated the A&M 4-1 in Horsemanship. Despite an effort from sophomore Kaylynn Heitman, senior Millie Landon, senior Hanna Olaussen and Thomas keeping the Aggies in the game — but it wasn’t enough. Senior Ellie Gerbrandt was the only Aggie that secured a point with a score of 76.2 on Austin.
Meanwhile sophomore Alana Tietz, junior June Roberson, sophomore Bella D’Onofrio and graduate Claire McDowall brought the Cowgirls back into the match, securing four points with scores of 74.8, 74.5, 76.7 and 76.7 on Mikey, Lance, Hector and Garth.
Oklahoma State kept its momentum in Reining, winning a close 3-2 battle over A&M. Despite the Aggies managing to secure two points from senior Mattie Gustin and sophomore Isabelle Gonzalez with scores of 70.3 and 69.5 on Roxie and Nike, it wasn’t enough to close out the Cowgirls.
Senior Quincee Clark and the sophomore duo of Ava Bush and Emma Filiatreau secured three points for the Cowgirls, on scores of 72, 70.2 and 68.7 on Tuni, Alfie and Odie. Not only did the Cowgirls win Reining and Horsemanship with a combined total point of 7-3, they tied the score at 10-10 after the final event.
Luckily for the Aggies, they held the advantage in the final raw score, 1568.75-1537.67, to knock out the Cowgirls and move onto the semifinals.
Semifinals against No. 7 Georgia:
The Bulldogs cruised past the Aggies to move onto the finals of the NCEA tournament, 16-4.
Georgia carried their momentum from outdueling No. 2 seed Auburn in the quarterfinals, starting off hot with a 5-0 lead over A&M in Fences. Fifth year Jordan Toering, senior Melissa Deryn Foster, junior Tessa Brown, sophomore Tessa Downey and senior Catalina Peralta earned points with scores of 83, 86.7, 84,86 and 86 on DJ, Hardy, Bentley, Tigger and Schnitzel.
It got worse for the Aggies as the Bulldogs put up another 5-0 score in Flats. Toering, graduate Sophia Pilla, Peralta, senior Jessica Guginsky and junior Isabella David cruised through with another five points for the Bulldogs, with scores of 83.7, 86.3, 86, 82.3 and 84.7 on Major, Georgie, Eleanor, Rex and Jakson. Despite efforts from Nealon, Thomas and McMillion, it was not enough to secure points for the Aggies.
Georgia continued to dominate over A&M with a gentleman sweep in Reining, 4-1. Despite the Aggies pulling off their best effort, it wasn’t enough as the Bulldogs dominated them.
Sophomore Kennedy Buchanan, junior Raegan Shepherd, junior Shelby Lynch and senior Jax Bound killed any chance of an Aggie comeback, securing four points on scores of 71.7, 72.3, 69.2 and 71.5 on Shiney, Cowgirl, Ben and Tuni. The Aggies managed a single point from senior Lauren Hanson, who scored 69.8 on Shiner.
The Aggies finished off the tournament winning Horsemanship with a score of 3-2. Junior Meagan Braun, Landon and Olaussen won three points for the Aggies with scores of 75.8, 72.5 and 76.5 on Pete, Billy and Shrek. But the Bulldogs were able to steal two points of their own from junior Alyvia Dixon and senior Jordan Davis on Red and Cisco.
A&M concluded its season with the loss to Georgia, 16-4.
