No. 2 SMU equestrian advances with 13-7 win over No. 7 SC

[PonyPride]

From SMUMustangs.com:

No. 2 Seed SMU Advances To NCEA Semifinals With 13-7 Win Over No. 7 Seed South Carolina

OCALA, Fla. (SMU) – The No. 2 seed SMU equestrian team defeated No. 7 seed South Carolina 13-7 in the quarterfinal round of the 2024 NCEA Championships on Thursday at the World Equestrian Center.

SMU improves to 10-4 on the season with the win, with South Carolina ending its year 7-9.

The Mustangs have now advanced to the semifinal round in their last four NCEA Championship appearances.

The meet began with Fences and Reining occurring simultaneously.

Elli Yeager got SMU on the board with an 83.67, beating South Carolina's Alexa Aureliano's 78.33. Taylor Madden then scored SMU's second Fences point with 85.67-78 win over Jordan Allen.

The Mustangs took four points to win the Reining event, beginning with Chalyce Head's 69.67-65 win over Chloe VanStone. Dani Latimer followed with a 70.17-66.83 victory against Chloe Stephenson. Lily Anderson also scored for SMU with a 66.67, with Taylor Zimmerman pushing the Mustangs out to a 6-4 halftime lead in a 71.67-69.17 win against Emma Lane.

The second half saw the Flat and Horsemanship coincide.

Emma Engel kicked off the second half with a point for SMU, beating South Carolina's Sarah Rabb 81.33-81. Augusta Iwasaki picked up the Mustangs' second point on the Flat by defeating Mary Hunter Millet 77-68.67. To cap off SMU's 3-2 victory on the Flat, Madden earned her second point of the day by beating Ellie Beard 83-80.33.

Horsemanship also took four points, helping SMU's western squads to a dominant 8-2 overall performance. Jayna Lagace, a freshman, earned her first NCEA Championships win with a score of 72.17. Caroline Nielson followed with a 74-72.83 victory against Carly Jenkins to earn SMU's 11th point and clinch the win. Lily Anderson came away with a 75.17-73.67 win over Kiersten Beckner and Nya Kearns defeated Jenna Berghorst 74.67-70.17 to tack on SMU's final two points of the meet.

The Mustangs will face No. 6 seed Oklahoma State in the semifinal round on Friday at 8 a.m. (CT) at the World Equestrian Center.

[Water Pony]

Pony Up ... literally.

Well done, Mustangs!