March 2, 2017
AUBURN, Ala. -- The No. 4 Auburn equestrian team concludes the regular season with a tough road trip, heading to No. 1 Baylor and No. 2 Texas A&M this weekend. The Tigers and the top-ranked Bears square off at 1 p.m. CT Friday in Waco, Texas. AU then heads to SEC rival Aggies for an 11 a.m. CT meet Saturday in College Station.
"All road matches are tough in this sport," head coach Greg Williams said. "We've never been in the position going against No. 1 and No. 2 in the same weekend so this is going to be challenge. We always look forward to traveling together as a team and we are going to be ready to compete coming off last weekend's road win."
AUBURN LINEUP
The lineup for the Tigers (6-3, 2-2) will remain relatively the same this weekend against tough competition.
In Equitation Over Fences senior Hunt Seat rider Ashley Foster will start in both meets, leading the team with an 9-1 record in the event. Sophomores Caitlin Boyle, Hayley Iannotti, Alex Ladove and Ashton Alexander will follow.
Senior Tory Hoft will look for her ninth win of the season in Equitation on the Flat. She will be joined by Foster along with Iannotti, Alexander and Boyle on the weekend.
The Horsemanship corps has experienced a lot of success this season and will be led by senior Hannah Stephens and sophomores Lauren Diaz and Megan Rauh. Freshman Horsemanship powerhouse Kara Kaufmann will also start against both Texas teams with an 8-0-1 record in her first season with the team. Freshman Drew Rogers will compete against Baylor, while junior Kelsey Jung will get the nod vs. Texas A&M.
The Reining roster will not change over the two days and will feature experienced competitor Alexa Rivard followed by sophomores Betsy Brown, Blair McFarlin and Ali Fratessa. Diaz, a major force in the Horsemanship, will also ride for Auburn.
AUBURN-BAYLOR SERIES HISTORY
The Tigers are undefeated in the all-time series with Baylor, holding an 8-0 record vs. the Bears. The teams have only met in Waco during the regular season just once with the Tigers taking an 11-9 win in 2009.
Auburn and Baylor opened the 2016 spring season on The Plains (Jan. 30) and the Tigers earned a 15-5 victory. Three AU riders in Caitlin Boyle, Ashton Alexander, and Ali Fratessa were awarded MOP honors in the meet.
AUBURN-TEXAS A&M SERIES HISTORY
Saturday's meet is the 18th meeting between the two teams since they first faced off during the 2003-04 season. The Tigers are 12-5 overall vs. the Aggies, but TAMU has enjoyed success at home vs. AU and have a 5-1 mark.
UP NEXT
The Tigers return to the Auburn University Horse Center for the 2017 SEC Equestrian Championship. The two-day competition will feature all four conference teams and is set to run March 24-25. Admission will be free.
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