Texas A&M
Oklahoma State (Hunter Seat 5th Place)
Western Riders Win National Championship
Apr 20, 2007 | Equestrian
April 20, 2007
The Texas A&M western team added a new chapter to its national championship history by capturing the 2007 Varsity Equestrian National Championship at the Heart O?™ Texas Fair Complex on Friday night.
Despite finding themselves down 2-0 for the third straight match, the top-seeded Aggies persevered by winning each one of the final six matches to down No. 7 seed South Carolina, 6-2.
A&M?™s western match was easily its best of the national show. All eight championship match rides earned scores at or above 70 from both judges.
?It?™s exciting for us to come up here with a very young team and accomplish what we were able to accomplish,? A&M head coach Tana Rawson said. ?We had our troubles and had to battle through the week but in the end those hardships just made us stronger when we needed it the most.?
Sophomore Sibyl Parsons (Combine) got the Aggies steered back on the right track after the team fell in the 2-0 hole by winning her match with South Carolina?™s Katy Biffle by a score of 146.5-141.5.
Freshman Caroline Gunn (Greensburg, Ind.) followed up Parsons?™ high score by posting the highest western score of the entire championship week to even the match at two points apiece. Gunn smoked her way to a score of 149.5 (75.5-74) to best an impressive total of 146.5 produced by Gamecock Rachel Sternoff.
With the match all even at two points apiece, the A&M reiners took control and never let up. The Aggies won all four reining matches by at least three points each.
Sophomore Amanda Ryan (Ramona, Calif.) gave A&M the lead with a solid 141-130.5 win over Rebekah Roof. Sophomore Tonna Brooks (Newberg, Ore.), who has arguably been the best western rider in the country this year, followed up Ryan?™s win with a 145.5-141.5 victory over Lindsay Williams.
With the Aggies on the cusp of victory, freshman Maggie Gratny (Leavenworth, Kan.) did her best Mariano Rivera impersonation by closing out the match with the second best reining score of the entire day. Gratny, who has been one of A&M?™s top reiners in her first year on campus, clinched the win with a 147-143.5 victory over Rachel Sternoff.
Sophomore Maddi Williams (Valley View) finished off both a perfect 3-0 record at nationals, and South Carolina, with a 144-141 win over the Gamecocks?™ Allison Bradley.
The A&M hunter seat team fought valiantly against Oklahoma State in the fifth-place match but fell in the end, 5-3. OSU?™s Michelle Woolschlager clinched the win for OSU by recording the Cowgirls?™ top hunt seat score of the day in the final ride of the match.
The Aggies split the fences rides with the Cowgirls. Sophomore Courtney Brooks (Alamo, Calif.) defeated Natalie Chappell, 165-155.5, while freshman Lindsay Smith (West Friendship, Md.) bested OSU freshman Allyson Blais. Sophomore Christina Matz (McKinney) ended a fine season by beating Blais, 150-136, on the flat.
South Carolina won the hunter seat national championship over the University of Georgia, marking their third straight title at the VENC show
Thanks to their western championship and sixth-place finish in the hunter seat tournament, the Aggies earned a second place finish in the overall team standings. South Carolina won its second overall national title in three years, beating the Aggies, 64-42. Georgia was third with 31 points.
?We could hardly be happier coming out of this show with this team being the reserve national champion in the overall team standings,? Rawson said. ?We have come a long way over the course of this season and have even greater things to accomplish in the future.?
