Texas A&M
Auburn
Aggie Equestrian Ends Season in NCEA Quarterfinals
Apr 17, 2015 | Equestrian
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The No. 4 Texas A&M Equestrian team fell to No. 5 Auburn, 9-6, in the quarterfinals of the NCEA National Championship. This was the Aggies' fourth-straight trip to Waco for the championship and their first appearance in the quarterfinals since 2013. With the loss, the Aggies finish 2014-15 with an 8-7 record, 3-3 in SEC action, to match their highest win total since the winning the 2012 national championship.
In the Western Arena, action began as the team's faced off in reining. Junior Logan Pluhar took the first point for A&M, riding a 136.5 and defeating her opponent by a slim margin of one. Auburn won the next two points by a combined margin of 11 to take a 2-1 lead. Junior Hannah Williams scored the tying point for the Ags, riding a 139 to defeat AU's Allie Dusha 139-136.
The Tigers came out strong, sweeping the competition in Equitation on the Flat, 4-0. Senior Haley Buchmiller and junior Marlena Parker led the Aggies with scores of 171 but both were bested by scores of 177 and 179, respectively. Junior Audrey Gallagher and sophomore Anna Rea both scored above a 150, 152 and 163 respectively, but couldn't top the stellar scores from Auburn.
Trailing 6-2 after the first two events, the Aggies were unable to get their footing over Fences and fell 3-1 to Auburn. Parker scored the only point for the Aggies with a 143-134 victory. Freshman Alex Desiderio, junior Hannah Williams and senior Leah Chenelle also represented the Aggies in the final hunt seat discipline but were unable to come away victorious.
The quarterfinal meet wrapped up with the horsemanship competition, the only discipline that A&M took during the day. Senior Molli Jacobs dominated the first point by a 12.5 point margin, 143.5-131. Junior Logan Pluhar took the second point with a team-high 148.5 and freshman Avery Ellis rounded out the Aggie victories with a 146-132.5 triumph. Sophomore Kaci Fisher, the final Aggie rider in the event, rode a solid 136.5, which was matched by her opponent, cancelling the point.
Let's Hear a Hullabaloo…
…for the leaving it all in the arena. In a conference that houses four of the top ten teams and the only programs to win overall NCEA national championships, the competition is stiff week in and week out. The Aggies closed out the season with an undefeated regular season record in their new facility as well as wins over each SEC opponent, the first time since joining the conference they've accomplished that feat. In just their third year in the league, Texas A&M advanced to the final round of the SEC Championship for the first time and claimed five wins over top ten programs. Gig 'em, Aggies!
To learn more about the Aggie Equestrian Team, log onto 12thMan.com or follow @AggieEquestrian on Twitter.
Players Mentioned
