No. 1 Auburn equestrians host South Carolina Saturday

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AUBURN, Ala. (auburntigers.com)– The No. 1 Auburn equestrian team returns to the Auburn University Horse Center Saturday, Feb. 27, for an SEC meet vs. No. 9 South Carolina. The Tigers and Gamecocks face off starting at 1 p.m. CT.

Auburn Lineup

Scheduled to compete for the Tigers in Equitation over Fences will be freshman Ashton Alexander, senior Elizabeth Benson, freshman Caitlin Boyle, junior Ashley Foster and freshman Hayley Iannotti.

In Horsemanship, the lineup will feature freshman Lauren Diaz, senior Griffin Knight, senior Hannah Loseke, freshman Sarah Miller and junior Hannah Stephens.

Alexander, Benson, Boyle, Foster and junior Tory Hoft will compete in Equitation on the Flat.

Senior Allie Dusha, Knight, freshman Blair McFarlin, senior Hailey Munger and sophomore Alexa Rivard will represent Auburn in Reining.

Scouting the Gamecocks

The No. 9 South Carolina Gamecocks enter the weekend with a 3-7 overall record and are 0-5 in conference competition. The defending national champion closed out its home schedule last weekend, hosting No. 3 Texas A&M. South Carolina fell to the Aggies, 10-9.

Seniors Abigail Pait and Samantha Smith each were awarded Most Outstanding Performer honors against Texas A&M. Pait picked up a 73.5-68 win in Horsemanship, while Smith won her match in Equitation over Fences, 85-84.

Last Time vs. South Carolina

The then-No. 4 Tigers pulled off a 14-6 upset of then-No. 2 South Carolina, Oct. 9, 2015, in Blythewood, S.C. Auburn won Reining (4-1), Fences (3-2) and Flat (5-0).

Senior Elizabeth Benson was awarded MOP honors on the Flat with a 96-82 victory. Junior Ashley Foster’s 90-86 win over Fences gave her MOP honors in the event, while senior Hailey Munger earned the MOP award in Reining with a 74-72.5 win. Benson, Foster and freshman Caitlin Boyle each finished with two wins on the day.

In the Rankings

With wins over then-No. 3 Baylor (Jan. 30) and at No. 2 Georgia (Feb. 13), the Tigers hold on to the top stop in the nation. Auburn stands at 7-1 overall with a 3-1 record in conference action.

Rounding out the Top 5 is Georgia, Texas A&M, Baylor and Oklahoma State. TCU is sixth, SMU stands in seventh, Fresno State is eighth, South Carolina is ninth and Kansas State rounds out the rankings in 10th.

Up Next

The Tigers return to the Auburn University Horse Center for another SEC match-up, hosting No. 3 Texas A&M. The teams will face off Saturday, March 5, beginning at 1 p.m. CT. The meet will also serve as the team’s Senior Day meet.