Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Texas A&M (WESTERN)
Bulldogs Finish Fourth at Big 8 Western Meet
1/28/2006 12:00:00 AM | Equestrian
Jan. 28, 2006
FRESNO, Calif. - The Fresno State Bulldogs equestrian team's western riders dropped two matches Saturday, on the final day of action at the Big 8 Western Tournament held at N.W. Dick Freeman Arena on Saturday. The Bulldog English squad, had a solid day competing at the Stanford Invitational show.
The Bulldogs entered the show as the No. 3 seed, but lost to No. 7 seed New Mexico State 711-560.5 in the semifinal match. No. 4 Georgia captured third place over Fresno State, 733.5 - 716.5, in the highest scoring match of the weekend.
"Even though we lost to Georgia in the last round, putting us fourth overall, we had a higher final score than NMSU in their final performance (691), so we had the third highest score in the final round against the best collegiate equestrian competition in the country.," said head coach Becky Malmo. "Overall, I'm pleased with the improvement shown by the elite western squad, both since our last competition, and over the course of this event, as evidenced by the 697 in the first round and the 716.5 in the third round. Sara Barnes is the only athlete returning from last year's western competition squad; both Heidi and Elise are rookies this year in the reining competition. So it is fair to say they turned in quite respectable performances, considering their limited experience. We have some areasto fine tune before we compete again in the bracket format against the NCAA equestrian schools again in April, in Albuquerque, at the Varsity Equestrian Championships."
Texas A&M, seeded No. 1 in the tournament, won the event, defeating Georgia and New Mexico State.
Fresno State returns to action on Feb. 11 hosting the University of Georgia at the Student Horse Center.
Big 8 Western Tournament Semifinals
New Mexico State 711, Fresno State 560.5
Horsemanship
Heidi Smith, Fresno State lost to Bryn Wells, New Mexico State 145-139
Sara Barnes, Fresno State lost to Christina Wilder, New Mexico State 139-136.5
Elise Kolp, Fresno State lost to Kate Chesley, New Mexico State 144-143.5
Reining
Heidi Smith, Fresno State lost to Kelli Yonker, New Mexico State 140-0
Sara Barnes, Fresno State def. Bryn Wells, New Mexico State 141.5-0
Elise Kolp, Fresno State lost to Ashley Dietz, New Mexico State 143-0
Big 8 Western Tournament Third Place Match
Georgia 733.5, Fresno State 716.5
Horsemanship
Heidi Smith, Fresno State def. Dana Kennedy144.5-142
Sara Barnes, Fresno State lost to Carly Veldman, Georgia 150.5-145
Elise Kolp, Fresno State def. Kari Ellingson, Georgia 147-144
Reining
Elise Kolp, Fresno State lost to Kate Stewart, Georgia 146-130
Sara Barnes, Fresno State lost to Carly Veldman, Georgia 145-140.5
Heidi Smith, Fresno State lost to Sarah Meier, Georgia 148-139.5
Bulldog English Squad Performs Well at Stanford
Several Bulldogs competed at the Stanford English show Saturday at Palo Alto. Three Dogs earned second place honors including Amy Simmons in Open English Equitation, Shannon Ragsdale in Intermediate English Equitation and Erin Saunders in Advanced English Equitation. Saunders has now qualified for the regional championships. Kate Nenneker had a strong day placing third in Open Equitation Over Fences and fourth in Open English Equitation. Noelle Dukes (Novice English Equitation) and Marybeth Brown (Walk-Trot English Equitation) each earned fourth place in their events. Morgan McDonald places sixth in Open Equitation Over Fences and Cambria Kissel was seventh in Open Equitation Over Fences. The action resumes tomorrow morning at 9:00 at the Big Red Barn at Stanford Univerity.
Players Mentioned
