Vogt, Schaefer and Bald Earn All-America Honors
WACO, Texas – A trio of South Carolina equestrian riders added some national honors when Juniors Sloane Vogt & Caroline Bald, and sophomore Madeline Schaefer all earned National Collegiate Equestrian Association Ariat All-America honors, NCEA officials announced on Thursday.
Vogt headlines the class with her First Team All-America honor in reining. The junior finished the season with a 6-2-0 record and three Most Outstanding Player honors. All three of Vogt’s M.O.P. wins came away from OneWood Farm, picking up the first one at Texas A&M, and then back-to-back award wins against Auburn to close the regular season on the plains and in the SEC Championship semifinal. Vogt also earned NCEA Reining Rider of the Month honors for November 2020, SEC Reining Rider of the Fall honors and co-SEC Reining Rider of the Month for March.
“I’m so proud of the efforts Sloane has made over the past few years,” head coach Boo Major said of the junior. “We have gone back and forth with her as a horsemanship rider and a reiner. This year Coach McGrath started her competing only as a reiner although she was practicing both reining and horsemanship. It proved to be a wise move as Sloane came into her own and proved she is one of the best in the country. We were able to put Sloane into horsemanship toward the end of the season where she also excelled winning both her points at the SEC Championship in horsemanship. I am excited for Sloane’s future here at South Carolina.”
Schaefer earned over fences Second Team All-America honors, giving her All-America honors for the second year in a row after making the over fences First Team in 2020. The sophomore finished the regular season with a 4-1-1 record and a pair of M.O.P. honors. Schaefer’s first M.O.P. win came in the fall finale against Georgia, and she closed out the regular season with a M.O.P. win at Auburn over fellow All-America Emma Kurtz.
“Maddie is one of the most competitive riders on the team,” Major said. “She really hates to lose and takes it personally. The pandemic has been hard on Maddie, but she has persevered and managed to put herself in consideration for the All-America award. Her work here is not done and I see her making every effort to continue her winning ways for the next two years at Carolina.”
Bald continued the momentum she had from last season into a breakout junior campaign, finishing the season with a 5-2-0 flat record, earning a spot the Second Team All-America squad for her efforts on the flat. Bald claimed one M.O.P. honor on the season for her win against Lynchburg to open the spring. The junior picked up multiple road wins with victories at Georgia, at Auburn, and against Auburn in the SEC Championship semifinal.
“Caroline is another one that came into her own this year,” Major said of Bald. “Riding well on the flat takes a lot of discipline and devotion and Caroline has shown that. “Coach Terebesi and I continue to be excited about Caroline’s ability to get along with almost every horse she rides and it has paid off this year with an All-America honor. She is a competitor that will be fierce to contend with next year.”
The Gamecocks are the first alternate team if any teams set for the NCEA National Championship is not able to compete.
