Oct. 8, 2011
AUBURN, Ala. – South Carolina’s equestrian team battled Auburn to a 10-10 tie on Saturday at the Auburn University Horse Center, but lost the competition on the raw score tiebreaker.
The Gamecocks and Tigers finished with a 5-5 tie in both Hunt Seat and Western. In Hunt Seat, Auburn prevailed on the tiebreaker, 783-756. In the Western tiebreaker, the Tigers also won based on the tiebreaker.
In Horsemanship, the Gamecocks won three of five points, including an MVP win by senior captain Maggie Fortune. She defeated Kristin Hansen, 74-71.5. Sophomores Johnna Letchworth and Alison Ceresani both improved to 3-0 on the season. Letchworth defeated Auburn’s Katie Buff, 76.5-74, while also collecting the event-high score. Ceresani had the largest margin of victory, a five-point win over the Tigers’ Danielle Long.
In Reining, the Tigers took the event 3-2. Juniors Amanda Pope and Audrey Jewell won the first two points of the event, but Auburn went on to win three straight, tying the Western score at 5-5.
In Hunt Seat action, Kimberly McCormack and Carolyn Curcio shined for the Gamecocks. The two juniors each went 2-0 on Saturday, with McCormack improving to 6-0 on the season.
In Equitation on the Flat, McCormack and Curcio both picked up wins, as did freshman Amber Henter. McCormack scored an event-high 79 to defeat Auburn’s Grace Socha, who scored a 73. Curcio picked up a 78-77 win over Maggie McAlary, and Henter earned a 75-74 win over Lindsay Portela. In an exhibition ride, Alexa Anthony defeated her opponent, 76-74.
In Equitation Over Fences, McCormack and Curio scored the Gamecocks’ only two points. Curcio defeated Christina Lin, 82-80, and McCormack picked up a two-point win over Socha.
South Carolina returns to action on Oct. 28, when they travel to Dallas to compete against SMU.