Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Tennessee-Martin
Bulldogs Finish 1-2 at Willis Invite
10/10/2015 12:00:00 AM | Equestrian
By: Kimberly Fisher
kimfisher@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
WACO, Texas - The Fresno State equestrian team defeated the University of Tennessee-Martin (12-3), before falling 9-6 to No. 3 Baylor at the Willis Invitational on Saturday.
"Today's performance was much better," head coach Eric Hubbard said. "I wish it would have come earlier, we hit a few bumps along the way but those can be fixed. We will re-focus to take on New Mexico State at home, as we simply just made too many mistakes against them on Friday."
Fresno State was coming off a 9-7 loss to No. 9 New Mexico State on Friday as UT-Martin fell 14-2 to tournament host No. 3 Baylor at the Willis Family Equestrian Center. At the conclusion of the weekend, the Bears went undefeated (3-0) at home, Fresno State held a 1-2 record, UT-Martin went 1-2 and New Mexico State's lone victory came against the Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs opened competition against UT-Martin on Friday and went on to top the Skyhawks 12-3 in the remaining events on Saturday. In Equitation on the Flat, Alex Dirickson (62) and Savannah Bernard (58) defeated their opponents giving Fresno State an early 2-1 lead. The Hunt Seat division was concluded with Equitation Over Fences, as three Bulldogs earned their respective point over UT-Martin- Sierra Swaffar (80), Kylina Chalack (82) and Paige Pastorino (81).
On the Western side, Fresno State saw a 4-0 sweep over the Skyhawks as Madison Robinson (74), Rachel Williams (73.5), Taylor Brown (76.5) and Taylor Dixon (74.5) showcased strong rides in Horsemanship. The ‘Dogs went on to tally a 3-1 victory in Reining while Alysa Frias (67), Kara Gustafson (69.5) and Taylor Brown (66) each came out on top.
The Bulldogs claimed Most Outstanding Player accolades in all four events against the Skyhawks on Saturday. Swaffer earned her second honor of the weekend both on the flat and over fences while Brown (Horsemanship) and Gustafson (Reining) rounded out the final two.
Against No. 3 Baylor, the ‘Dogs earned a 3-1 victory in Equitation on the Flat as Genna Fogelberg (73), Swaffar (80) and Alexandra Dirickson (72) all topped their opponents. Dirickson logged her second victory against Baylor in Equitation Over Fences with a high score of 89, picking up a MOP honor.
Brown earned the Bulldogs lone point in Horsemanship while Dixon was named the MOP in Reining after scoring a 69.5 over her opponents 63.5.
"We had some great rides today," Hubbard added. "Of the 12 Most Outstanding Player opportunities we brought home 10, as we impressively swept all of them over UT-Martin and New Mexico State. We also took two from Baylor, who is known to be tough at home. Kara [Gustafson] and Taylor [Dixon] earned first time MOP's in Reining while Alex [Dirickson] and Paige [Pastorino] claimed their first in fences. The Hunt Seat team rode very well against a tough Baylor squad and we're looking for them to continue getting better. In the Horsemanship, we put up some big scores all weekend and I'm proud of that."
Up next, Fresno State will take a one week break from competition before returning to its home dirt at the Student Horse Arena (Oct. 23-24), hosting No. 9 New Mexico State and No. 7 Texas A&M. Since 2006, the Bulldog equestrian team owns a 5-4 record in home openers.
In previous action, the Bulldogs led No. 1 Georgia 8-6 heading into the final event before falling 12-8 to the undefeated national leader on Oct. 2. Fresno State opened Saturday's action tied 4-4 with Delaware State, and topped the Hornets 9-7, splitting opening weekend 1-1.
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