No. 5 Texas A&M Equestrian battled in the Southeastern Conference semifinal against No. 6 Georgia at the Tryon International Equestrian Center. The Aggies won 10-9 in a close match, securing a spot in the SEC Championship Final.
“I am beyond proud of this team,” coach Tana McKay said. “They are an amazing group of women, and the staff is second to none. They came in as a team, pulled through as a team as it got so close, and it paid off for them. They have worked so hard, and I am excited to see them compete tomorrow.
Falling short in Fences
The Bulldogs started off strong over the Aggies, winning Fences, 3-1.
Sophomore Alida Treuting gained a single point for the Aggies, scoring 83.67 on Rico. Senior Brooke Brombach prevented the Bulldogs from gaining another point by drawing against junior Tessa Brown with a score of 81.67 on Nano.
But the Bulldogs took the final three points to win the Fences discipline, thanks to fifth year Jordan Toering and the senior duo of Catalina Peralta and Melissa Deryn Foster, with scores of 87.33, 87.67 and 81.33 on JJ, Schnitzel and MJ.
Rebounding in Flat
The Aggies rebounded back after a tough start, winning the Flat competition with a competitive 3-2 score. Senior Rylee Shufelt, graduate Maggie Nealon and sophomore Nicole McMillion managed to secure three points for the Aggies, with scores of 78.33, 79.67 and 80.67 on Georgie, DJ and Bebe.
The Bulldogs battled back and managed to steal two points from the Aggies. Junior Isabella David and graduate Sophia Pilla kept the Bulldogs’ hopes alive, with scores of 77 and 74.67 on Campino and Major.
Keeping the momentum going in Horsemanship
A&M continued its momentum, winning Horsemanship with another 3-2 score. The senior trio of Ellie Gerbrandt, Hanna Olaussen and Millie Landon won three close battles with scores of 75, 68.17 and 76.67 on Red, Brad and Boomer.
Despite the event loss, the Bulldogs managed to take two points with the senior duo of Jillian Stopperich and Jordan Davis scoring 76.5 and 73.83 on Chopper and Billy.
Battling in Reining
The Aggies secured a win in the final event, taking the Reining discipline by a 3-2 margin.. Sophomore Anna Harris, senior Mattie Gustin and senior Lauren Hanson secured three points, scoring 67.17, 71.33 and 71.17 on Okie, Shrek and Nike.
Georgia fought back and stole two final points, with junior Shelby Lynch and senior Jax Bound scoring 69.17 and 69.5.
Georgia’s attempt was not enough to take down A&M as the Maroon and White will play for the SEC Championship Final thanks to their 10-9 victory.
A&M will face No. 7 South Carolina in the SEC Championship Final at the Tryon International Equestrian Center on Saturday, March 29 at 9:00 a.m.
