AUBURN, Ala. – Postseason success is now on the eyes of the No. 1 Auburn equestrian team as the squad is set to compete in the 2019 SEC Championship this weekend, March 29-30. The two-day meet is being held at the Hildebrand Equine Complex on the campus of Texas A&M.
The Tigers are the No. 1 seed and will take on No. 4 seed South Carolina at 1:30 p.m. CT, March 29. The No. 2 seed Georgia Bulldogs and No. 3 seed Texas A&M will kick off the day at 9 a.m. CT. The two losing teams from the first day will face off in the consolation match at 9 a.m. CT Saturday with the two winners facing off for the championship at 1:30 p.m. CT.
"We are very ready to kick off postseason," head coach Greg Williams said. "Practices have been fantastic and ownership of the work level, riding level and competitive drive has been completely shifted to a team-driven mentality. My favorite part is when the vested interest the players put into a program translates to ownership."
AUBURN LINEUP
Highlighting the Auburn lineup (13-0, 6-0) is an experienced group of upperclassmen, including seven seniors that were a part of the program's first Southeastern Conference championship in 2016.
Seniors Ashton Alexander, Caitlin Boyle and Hayley Iannotti will guide the Equitation Over Fences and Equitation on the Flat crew to kick things off vs. South Carolina Friday. The trio have been main competitors for the Tigers all four years and are among the program's best in each event.
Alexander has 19 wins on the year, while Iannotti has 18. Boyle has 17 and is one win away from setting a new Auburn record in career wins in Fences.
Joining the three against the Gamecocks will be freshmen McKayla Langmeier and Emma Kurtz. Langmeier enters the postseason with a perfect 19-0 record, having 10 wins in Flat and nine in Fences. Kurtz stands at 14-2-0 with seven wins in each event.
On the Western side of competition, the Horsemanship corps is led by a pair of seniors in Lauren Diaz and Kelsey Jung. Diaz finished the regular season with a 12-1-0 record and a team-leading six MOPs in the event. She also set the Auburn career wins record at Texas A&M (March 1) and enters the weekend with 40 to her name.
Jung has had a great final season for the Tigers, holding a 10-2-1 mark. Sophomore Taylor Searles also has 10 wins, while classmate Deanna Green isn't far behind with eight. Junior Kara Kaufmann is also slated to compete, having six victories on the year.
Three seniors guide the squad in Reining - Ali Fratessa, Blair McFarlin and Betsy Brown. Fratessa has put together a solid season so far, leading the team with nine wins and three MOPs. McFarlin has eight victories, while Brown has seven.
Joining the three are sophomores Green and Terri-June Granger. Green has been consistent all season in the event for the squad and brings eight wins into the postseason. Granger has really found her stride in the second half of the year, having seven victories overall have winning four of her last five matches.
SEVENTEENTH SEASON OF VARSITY EQUESTRIAN
The 2018-19 season marks the 17th year of varsity equestrian at Auburn. Head coach Greg Williams has guided the Tigers since the program was recognized by the Athletics Department and has amassed an impressive 154-57 overall record.
In 16 years, Auburn has earned five NCEA Championships (2006, 2011, 2013, 2016, 2018), one Southeastern Conference title (2016), three Southern Equestrian Conference crowns (2004, 2010, 2011), four NCEA Hunt Seat championships (2008, 2011, 2013, 2018) and one NCEA Western championship (2018).
Individually, Auburn boasts 59 All-Americans and 67 All-SEC and SEC All-Freshman selections. The Southeastern Conference first began sponsoring equestrian in 2012-13.
UP NEXT
Postseason continues with the 2019 NCEA Championship. Action is slated for April 17-20 and will be held at the Extraco Event Center in Waco, Texas.
