© Taylor Sondgeroth/Auburn Athletics
Auburn Equestrian Gallops Away with Six Straight SEC Title
An early surge by the Tigers’ Flat team stunned the host Aggies and paved the way for another conference championship.
Winning Championships ain’t easy. It takes talent, lots of hard work, and even a little good fortune. On Saturday, Auburn Equestrian had some of everything needed to capture a record sixth-straight SEC title.
How the Meet Went
Before each meet I compare the rider stats in every head-to-head matchup and identify the favorites in each. Auburn and Texas A&M are almost equally talented teams, so it was no surprise when the favorites showed an almost even breakdown of projected points.
With two evenly-matched teams like this, winning often comes down to who makes the fewer mistakes. Texas A&M made most of the mistakes today, and Auburn was eager to capitalize.
Equitation On the Flat got the day started and Auburn went wild from the first ride. Anybody wearing orange and blue scored points in the event, which in this case were Avery Glynn, Ava Stearns, Mary-Grace Segars, Ellie Ferrigno, and Sophee Steckbeck.
So with that 5-0 event win, the Tigers had stunned the #1 seeded Aggies and had the meet in control.
In the Western ring, A&M rallied a bit with a strong, but not overwhelming, Reining performance. Auburn’s Alexia Tordoff and Isabella Tesmer took their points, and only allowed the Aggies the 3-2 event win.
So instead of being down 3-7, as my brilliant matchup favorites suggested, Auburn was AHEAD 7-3. (I guess the moral here is that sometimes statistics ain’t enough. It certainly wasn’t for Texas A&M.)
Needing only a few more points, Auburn’s attention turned to Equitation Over Fences. Here, the Tigers handled the expectations like the champions they would soon be, winning three or the event’s five points.
Ava Stearns, Avery Glynn, and Ellie Ferrigno’s points put Auburn on the cusp of victory. Now it was up to the Tiger’s outstanding Horsemanship squad to seal the deal.
Auburn’s Caroline Fredenburg, Madison Parduhn, and Sydney Swallom took their points, while Alexia Tordoff also earned a no-point tie. This gave Auburn the 3-1 advantage in the event, and made the final score a decisive 13-6 Auburn win.
What the Win Means
Ending an up-and-down season with another SEC Championship shows Auburn Equestrian is still among the best in the sport. Despite finishing third in the regular season, the Tigers were able to march their way through the two higher seeded teams in back-to-back days.
The win also extends Auburn’s record streak of SEC Championships to six-straight.
Up Next for Auburn
Auburn will now await their seeding assignment in the National Championship Tournament. It’s expected that Auburn will wind up either the #3 or #4 seed nationally. The National Championship Tournament takes place in Ocala, Fl, April 18-20.
And if the Tigers can put together three more days like they did this weekend, there might be even more hardware awaiting them.
The Scoresheet
Auburn 13 - Texas A&M 6
FENCES:
Ava Stearns (AU) def Brooke Brombach (TAM): 83.33-70.67
Ali Treuting (TAM) def Mary-Grace Segars (AU): 94.67-91.67
Devon H. Thomas (TAM) def Sophee Steckbeck (AU): 94-79
Avery Glynn (AU) def Alexa Leong (TAM): 92.67-88.67
Ellie Ferrigno (AU) def Kate Egan (TAM): 91.33-89.67
FLAT:
Avery Glynn (AU) def Devon H. Thomas (TAM): 93-87
Ava Stearns (AU) def Maggie Nealon (TAM): 92.33-0
Mary-Grace Segars (AU) def Devan M. Thomas (TAM): 94.67-89.67
Ellie Ferrigno (AU) def Brooke Brombach (TAM): 93.33-91
Sophee Steckbeck (AU) def Rylee Shufelt (TAM): 89.67-87.33
HORSEMANSHIP:
Caroline Fredenburg (AU) def Millie Landon (TAM): 75.83-75.33
Alexia Tordoff (AU) tied Hanna Olaussen (TAM): 75.33-75.33
Cori Cansdale (TAM) def Alexis Potts (AU): 75.67-71.67
Madison Parduhn (AU) def Ellie Gerbrandt (TAM): 75.33-74.67
Sydney Swallom (AU) def Ella Petak (TAM): 74.17-71
REINING:
Lauren Hanson (TAM) def Olivia Marino (AU): 71.17-70.67
Alexia Tordoff (AU) def Mattie Gustin (TAM): 73.33-72.5
Emmy-Lu Marsh (TAM) def Caroline Buchanan (AU): 71.17-71
Isabella Tesmer (AU) def Gracie Casebolt (TAM): 72-71.17
Keesa Luers (TAM) def Kate Buchanan (AU): 72.17-71
