AUBURN, Ala. – The No. 1 Auburn equestrian welcomed two Jumping Seat teams in Sweet Briar and Lynchburg to the Plains Saturday afternoon for a tri-meet at the Auburn University Equestrian Center. The Tigers opened with an 8-2 victory over Sweet Briar and followed with a 9-1 win vs. Lynchburg.
"It was a great day today," head coach Greg Williams said. "Lynchburg was new to us and we were so happy to have them here today. It was fun to see two teams hungry to win as the underdogs, to fight hard and cherish each point won and savor all the close matches. We learned a lot today as a team and that is to stay scrappy and battle for every point. I'm really proud of the effort our team put in today."
The two team wins do not count towards the overall team record, but the individual wins count towards individual records and All-America consideration.
Auburn took all four MOP honors on the day. Senior Helen Ulrich and sophomore Ava Stearns were awarded recognition in Flat and Fences, respectively, against Sweet Briar. Freshman Ellie Ferrigno picked up both honors vs. Lynchburg.
The Tigers return to full team competition next weekend, hosting nationally-ranked South Carolina in the regular season finale. Auburn and the Gamecocks will face off at 11 a.m. CT at the Auburn University Equestrian Center.
#1 AUBURN 8, SWEET BRIAR 2
The Tigers kicked things off on Flat and put together a 3-2 mark in the event. Ulrich opened with a career-best 97 to win her point and earn MOP, while sophomore Emma Kurtz and Ferrigno followed with a pair of 89s in their wins.
The Fences corps closed out the first meet with a sweep. Senior Ericka Koscinski led off with an 87-70 victory and junior Meghan Knapic scored 85 points in her 20-point win. Ferrigno topped Emmy Longest, 87-76, and Kurtz bested Rachel Perry, 88-60. Stearns took home MOP with an 89 and a five-point margin of victory.
#1 AUBURN 9, LYNCHBURG 1
Auburn picked up a sweep in Flat vs. Lynchburg to start the final meet of the day. Koscinski set a career best with a 93 in her win, while Knapic followed with a career-high 90 in her four-point victory. Kurtz bested Lily Fraley, 75-56 and Ferrigno scored a 94 in her MOP win to set a career mark. Stearns capped the sweep with a 95-74 win over Caroline Waters.
The Fences crew finished with a 4-1 record against Lynchburg to close out the day. Knapic bested her opponent, 87-76, while Kurtz followed with an 86-82 win. Stearns bested Taylor Herzog, 85-72, and Ferrigno scored 90 points in her match up to take the win and the MOP.
