Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
No. 10 South Carolina
'Dogs set to finish regular season competition on the road this weekend
3/7/2018 4:30:00 PM | Equestrian
'Dogs set to finish regular season competition on the road this weekend
FRESNO, Calif. - The Fresno State equestrian team will be on the road this weekend for its final pair of regular season meets of the season against a pair of SEC foes. The 'Dogs will travel to No. 10 South Carolina (3-8) on Fri., March 9 at 10:00 am PT and No. 2 Auburn (8-3) on Sat., March 10 at 9:00 am PT.
"Anytime you compete against the SEC it will be tough competition," said head coach Eric Hubbard. "We are up for the challenge and we are prepared for a strong weekend."
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Last time against the Gamecocks and Tigers
The Bulldogs saw their second-ever program victory over the Gamecocks at the Student Horse Center on Nov. 4, 2016. Fresno State topped South Carolina, 10-8 in the meet. South Carolina has an 8-2 all-time advantage over Fresno State.
The then-No.9 Bulldogs faced the then-No.1 Tigers on Oct. 7, 2016 pulling an 11-5 upset on a neutral site over Auburn in Delaware. Auburn had won 17 of its last 18 competitions going into that meet with Fresno State. Auburn owns the advantage all-time against Fresno State, 6-3.
Scouting the Gamecocks
No. 10 South Carolina headed to Delaware for a double-header against Delaware State and No. 7 Baylor on Fri. March 2.
South Carolina defeated Delaware State, 6-4, but fell to No. 7 Baylor, 7-5, immediately after to move to 3-8 on the season.
In its matchup with Delaware State, South Carolina saw its most success in the horsemanship where it remained unbeaten. The Gamecocks' victory was in come-from-behind fashion as they trailed through the afternoon intermission. Due to weather complications, the equitation over fences event was cancelled so at the conclusion of just three events, the Gamecocks were able to edge a 6-4 win.
Against Baylor, South Carolina saw only one point in the reining but battled back in the flat to secure a 4-4 tie at the half. With no fences event for that day, the final score would come down to the horsemanship. The Gamecocks only earned one point in the horsemanship to fall to the Bears, 7-5.
The Gamecocks have earned two SEC Rider of the Month awards this season. Senior Lauren Fabiano was named the November SEC Equitation on the Flat Rider of the Month while senior Paisley Roberts was named the September Rider of the Month for Reining.
South Carolina was ranked No. 10 in three events in the Feb. 15 NCEA Events Rankings - Equitation over Fences, Horsemanship and Reining.
Scouting the Tigers
No. 2 Auburn is riding a five meet win streak after dominating No. 5 SMU, 14-3, on March 3. The Tigers saw a perfect 7-0 mark in the western events, going 4-0 in the horsemanship and 3-0 with two ties in the reining. Auburn took the flat 3-2 and the fences 4-1 to round out the afternoon with a 14-3 team victory.
Junior hunt seat rider Caitlin Boyle earned her second monthly honor of her career when she was named the SEC Equitation on the Flat Rider of the Month for November and freshman hunt seat rider Taylor St. Jacques was named the NCEA Equitation Over Fences Rider of the Month for February helping guide the Tigers to three-straight wins over Top 3 opponents.
Sophomore rider Kara Kaufmann represented the Tigers at the 2017 AQHA Collegiate Horsemanship Challenge in November. Kauffmann joined Bulldog senior Rachel Williams and six other riders for the show. As a freshman, Kauffmann was a NCEA All-American and was also the 2017 SEC Freshman Horsemanship Rider of the Year. She finished with an 11-3-1 overall mark and went undefeated in the NCEA Championships as a freshman.
Auburn saw top five rankings in all four events in the Feb. 15 NCEA Events Rankings. The Tigers came in at No. 3 for Equitation over Fences and Reining while coming in at No. 4 for Equitation on the Flat and Horsemanship.
Quick look at the Bulldogs
Fresno State is coming off of back-to-back losses from a pair of top-five ranked opponents. The 'Dogs fell to No. 4 SMU, 9-8, on Feb. 16 and to No. 5 Oklahoma State, 11-8, on Feb. 17.
Fresno State topped SMU in the fences (3-2), where SMU was ranked No.1 in the Feb. 15 NCEA Events Rankings, and the horsemanship (2-1) events to ride into the intermission with a 5-3 lead. The Mustangs outperformed the Bulldogs in the flat (3-1) and the reining (3-2) for an overall 9-8 victory. Senior Taylor Dixon (horsemanship) and sophomore Natalie Wendt (fences) earned MOP honors for their rides that day.
The 'Dogs fell to No. 5 OSU on Senior Day, 11-8. The Cowgirls won the fences event (3-2) to start the morning. Fresno State answered back in the horsemanship and took the event (4-1) for its best performance in the arena since Sept. 23. The Bulldogs had a 6-3 lead at halftime but fell in both the flat (3-1) and the reining (4-1) to drop the meet to OSU, 11-8. Seniors Rachel Williams (horsemanship) and Kylina Chalack (fences) earned MOPs on their final home meet of their Bulldog careers.
Fresno State was ranked in three events in the NCEA Events Rankings released on Feb. 15. The Bulldogs ranked No. 5 in Equitation on the Flat, No. 7 in Equitation Over Fences and No. 9 in Reining.
2017-18 Bulldogs
Equitation over Fences (22-25-1)
Kylina Chalack- 5-3-1, 1 MOP
Sierra Swaffar- 5-5, 2 MOPs
Paige Pastorino- 3-7, 1 MOP
Natalie Wendt- 3-4, 1 MOP
Alexandra Dirickson- 5-4
Hailey Livingston- 0-1
Dani Schneider- 1-1
ÂEquitation on the Flat (23-21-4)
Paige Pastorino- 0-1
Dani Schneider- 1-1
Sierra Swaffar- 6-3-1, 2 MOP
Kylina Chalack- 3-3-2
Alexandra Dirickson- 5-5, 1 MOP
Natalie Wendt- 4-3-1, 1 MOP
Brooke Nelson- 4-5, 1 MOP
ÂHorsemanship (20-23-5)
Katelyn Altenhofel- 3-3-1
Julia Kelly- 2-4-1
Rachel Williams- 4-5-1, 2 MOP
Taeya Harle- 7-2-1, 4 MOPs
Taylor Dixon- 2-7-1, 1 MOP
Alexis Miller- 2-2
ÂReining (20-27-1)
Taylor Dixon- 3-6
Kara Gustafson- 2-5, 1 MOP
Shea Gilson- 4-6
Allison Nordvall- 1-4-1
Paige Barton- 9-1, 3 MOPs
Annemarie Morias- 0-1
Alysa Frias- 0-2
Hailey Robison- 1-2
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