AUBURN, Ala. – When they enter the arena Saturday for the final time at the Auburn University Equestrian Center, seniors Taylor St. Jacques and Deanna Green will focus once more on two subjects in which they're both experts: winning and teamwork.
"We do everything here to win," said Green, the National Collegiate Equestrian Association's Horsemanship Rider of the Month in February. "We win in workouts, we win in school, we win at the barn.
"Coach [Greg] Williams says he wants us to win in life. Taking care of the horses, taking care of each other. He tries to teach us to all be winners everywhere."
"We do really work as a team," said St. Jacques, the SEC's Rider of the Month in Fences. "Our hashtag one season was #AsOne. That's really the best description of this team and the culture. We win as one, we lose as one, good days, bad days. We really are one team and one group of girls."
That combination of talent and togetherness has proven to be unbeatable for Auburn equestrian. The top-ranked Tigers enter Saturday's 11 a.m. CT competition against South Carolina having won 39 consecutive meets, including national championships in 2018 and 2019.
"These are the best riders in the country and getting to ride with them every day, I feel like we can all learn things from each other," said Green. "We each have our own strengths. We're really lucky to be able to teach and help each other because everyone here is great."
Already standouts in their respective events before their arrivals at Auburn, Green and St. Jacques have continued to excel on the Plains, each earning NCEA and SEC Riders of the Year honors in their events last season.
"Something I really love about school is the amount of support you get," said St. Jacques, noting the difference between riding solo and being part of a team. "It's very different than individual outside stuff. We've really learned to work as a team and not for ourselves. We've worked for the girls."Taylor St. Jacques
"The girls having each other's backs," Green said. "Being able to see each other, support each other every day. I think that's for sure what I'll miss the most."
To aspiring riders, the Auburn seniors offer advice straight from the opening lines of the Auburn Creed.
"Work hard," Green said. "Don't let your failures make you not want to reach your goals. Taylor and I both ended up being very successful, but no one starts there. It's really important to love what you do enough to work as hard as we have."Deanna Green
"That really is the biggest thing: keep working," said St. Jacques. "Don't let a downfall crush your dreams. No matter what it is, I want to be the best at what I do. That drive is what kept me going through tough times, bad days, bad weekends. What you put in is what you will get out. I'm a very strong believer of that."
Out of Auburn's equestrian program, Deanna Green and Taylor St. Jacques have extracted championships and relationships.
"We're both super grateful to have had the opportunity to ride here and to grow as people and riders," Green said. "We're happy we've had the chance to do this."
"Really grateful for all of the experiences, opportunities and lessons learned here," St. Jacques said. "Not just as a rider, I've grown a ton as a person. A lot of self-growth has happened over the past four years. All the girls, all the coaches, all the staff, all the support of Auburn equestrian is to be thanked for that."Auburn seniors Deanna Green, Ericka Koscinski and Taylor St. Jacques
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
