Gamecock Equestrian Announces 2023-24 Schedule
COLUMBIA, SC – South Carolina Equestrian head coach Boo Major has announced the 2023-24 schedule, kicking the regular season off at home against UC Davis. The full schedule can be found here.
“It is so exciting to be able to ramp back up to a regular year of competition,” Major said. “We have some great home and away meets coming up for the 23-24 season and can’t wait to hit the ground running.”
The Gamecocks come off a 2022-23 season of firsts and highlights, including three wins against top-10 ranked teams, a trip to NCEA Nationals for the first time since 2019, and two All-Americans (Trinity Hammerschmidt and Jordan Allen). South Carolina finished the regular season ranked in the top-10.
The 2023-24 equestrian schedule features seven non-conference opponents, and home/away series against all three fellow NCEA schools within the SEC (Auburn, Georgia, Texas A&M).
The Gamecocks will open things at home in Blythewood against the Aggies of UC Davis on Friday, Sept. 22. The meeting will be just the second all-time, and the first at One Wood Farm. UC Davis finished their 2022-23 season 5-7, in addition to the ECAC Championship title over UT Martin for the first time in program history.
South Carolina will stay home for a dual meet the following week, facing UT Martin and Lynchburg (jumping seat only) on Friday, Sept. 29. The Gamecocks last faced UT Martin on the road this past seaon (10/28/22), where South Carolina took home the 10-9 win. The meeting with the Skyhawks will be the 11th all-time, with the Gamecocks holding a 10-0 advantage.
One Wood Farm will see the third all-time meeting between South Carolina and Lynchburg later in the day, with only the jumping seat disciplines competing. The Gamecocks have won the previous two meets against the Hornets, but Lynchburg will be ready to compete coming off its second-consecutive NCEA single discipline national championship back in April.
The Gamecocks will then hit the road for the first time this fall, facing South Dakota State (SDSU) on Friday, Oct. 6, followed by Fresno State on Saturday, Oct. 7. South Carolina last met SDSU in the 2019-20 season, earning a 15-5 win at home (2/1/20), and Fresno State on the road in 2021. Despite falling in a close 9-10 battle (10/1/21), the Gamecocks still hold a 10-5 series advantage over the Bulldogs.
South Carolina will remain on the road for the next two meets, opening up SEC competition against Georgia on Friday, Oct. 13. The Gamecocks saw the Bulldogs twice in the regular season last year, and in the semifinals of the 2023 SEC tournament. In the fall, South Carolina posted their third win of the season over a ranked team against No. 3 Georgia (11/12/22) in a 10-9 thriller, after junior Emma Lane took home the point in a final tie-breaking ride. The Bulldogs finished their season 6-9 (2-4 SEC), and made it to NCEA Nationals in Ocala, ultimately falling 7-13 against Oklahoma State in the first round.
Two weeks later, the Gamecocks will head to Alabama to take on Auburn on Friday, Oct. 27. South Carolina faced Auburn four times last season, with their most recent meeting in the NCEA Championships in April. Despite a loss, several Gamecocks set new program records, including the newest top-three scores in Horsemanship (for three judges).
South Carolina will return home to round out the fall season against Texas A&M on Friday, Nov. 3, and Oklahoma State on Friday, Nov. 17. The Aggies of Texas A&M finished last year 9-7 (4-2 SEC), having faced Auburn in the SEC Championship meet, and making it to Ocala for nationals. The Gamecocks will take on Oklahoma State for the first time since 2019, with the overall series tied 9-9.
The second half of the season will open up at home, with Auburn heading to One Wood Farm on Feb. 3. The following two meets will be on the road, with competitions against TCU (Feb. 9) and Texas A&M (Feb. 10). The regular season will round out at home with a second meet against Georgia on Feb. 24, and SDSU on Friday, March 1.
The SEC Championship will be hosted by Texas A&M March 29-30, followed by the NCEA Championship April 18-20in Ocala, FL at the World Equestrian Center.
Fans are encouraged to follow along with in-season updates on Twitter and Instagram, @GamecockEQ.
