Auburn Equestrian Outlasts Texas A&M 10-6

Auburn Equestrian knew they were in for a tough meet with SEC-rival Texas A&M coming to town. The Aggies figured to match up well against Auburn in most of the events, so it was critical for the Tigers to grab as many tossup points as possible.

Some Background About the Sport

College equestrian matches up riders from each team into pairs, and has each rider in the pair take a turn on a shared horse, with the higher-scoring rider winning a point for her team.

You can get a good idea of which rider in the pair is expected to win by comparing their career-winning percentages. Some comparisons show an obvious favorite to win, but other times the two riders’ records are so close, it’s anyone’s guess as to who’ll likely win. Those are tossups.

Most of today’s matchups in Equitation on the Flat were tossups, and Auburn won them all.

How the Meet Went

The day started off with the aforementioned Flat event. Graduate Emma Kurtz, senior Ava Stearns, junior Ellie Ferrigno, and sophomores Mary-Grace Segars and Sophee Steckbeck all won their points, with Segars awarded Most Outstand Performance as well.

This remarkable performance was the Flat teams best all season, and it couldn’t have come at a better time.

The 5-0 start gave Auburn just enough breathing room to weather a stout Aggies comeback attempt.

In the next event, Reining, Texas A&M outscored the hosts by a score of 3-0. Auburn juniors Isabella Tesmer and Kate Buchanan limited the damage by securing no-point ties against their opponents, but there were no Auburn points in the event.

So at the half, Auburn enjoyed a small, 5-3 lead, but had two of their strongest events still remaining.

In Equitation Over Fences, Auburn extended the lead a bit more. Kurtz, Stearns, and Ferrigno each took points, giving Auburn the 3-2 advantage in the event. Ferrigno also took home MOP honors for her ride.

With the score 8-5 heading into the final event, there was still a sliver of hope among the Aggies faithful who’d made the trip to the Plains. If their Horsemanship riders could take 4 of the 5 remaining points, they would complete one of the most stunning comebacks in the series’ history.

Only a single Aggie Horsemanship rider would take a point.

Auburn seniors Maddie Spak and Olivia Tordoff won their points, and junior Madison Parduhn and freshman Alexia Tordoff each drew no-point ties to choke away the A&M comeback hopes. Olivia Tordoff would also be recognised here for her MOP-winning ride.

Perfect in Conference Play

The victory keeps Auburn 3-0 versus SEC competition. Georgia currently sits in second-place, at 1-1, with a tough Saturday road contest against South Carolina upcoming. Texas A&M is in third at 1-2, and South Carolina is in fourth at 0-2, still seeking their first conference win.

Up Next for Auburn Equestrian

The Tigers have one more weekend remaining in the fall season, and it'll be a big one on the Plains. The action starts off with a single-discipline-only meet against Bridgewater College, Thursday at 11 AM. Then on Friday, Auburn hosts defending National Champions, Oklahoma State at 3 PM.

Auburn’s meet against the Cowgirls promises to be another close contest, likely decided by which team wins those crucial tossups.

Fortunately for Auburn, they just proved they can win that way.

Friday’s Scoreboard
Texas A&M 6 - Auburn 10

FENCES:
Emma Kurtz (AU) def Brooke Brombach (TAM): 87-72
*Ellie Ferrigno (AU) def Morgan Rosia (TAM): 90-30
Ava Stearns (AU) def Devon H. Thomas (TAM): 86-84
Alexa Leong (TAM) def Mary-Grace Segars (AU): 82-81
Haley Redifer (TAM) def Sophee Steckbeck (AU): 86-84

FLAT:
Emma Kurtz (AU) def Maggie Nealon (TAM): 84-75
*Mary-Grace Segars (AU) def Devon H. Thomas (TAM): 90-84
Ava Stearns (AU) def Devan M. Thomas (TAM): 86-68
Sophee Steckbeck (AU) def Brooke Brombach (TAM): 84-66
Ellie Ferrigno (AU) def Rylee Shufelt (TAM): 85-84

HORSEMANSHIP:
Maddie Spak (AU) def Ella Petak (TAM): 74.5-73.5
Cori Cansdale (TAM) def Caroline Fredenburg (AU): 73-67
Alexis Robinson (TAM) tied Madison Parduhn (AU): 74.5-74.5
*Olivia Tordoff (AU) def Hanna Olaussen (TAM): 76.5-72.5
Ellie Gerbrandt (TAM) tied Alexia Tordoff (AU): 72-72

REINING:
Malena Lopez (TAM) tied Isabella Tesmer (AU): 71-71
*Lisa Bricker (TAM) def Caroline Buchanan (AU): 71.5-67
Lauren Hanson (TAM) def Alexia Tordoff (AU): 65-0
Ariana Gray (TAM) def Boo Kammerer (AU): 62-59.5
Emmy-Lu Marsh (TAM) tied Kate Buchanan (AU): 70.5-70.5

*Event MOP