Equestrian Crowned SEC Champions

TRYON, NC – The fourth-seeded Gamecock Equestrian team completed the ultimate Cinderella story, taking down the No. 1 team in the country (Auburn) en route to an SEC Championship after defeating the third-seeded Texas A&M Aggies 11-8 on Saturday. The Gamecocks became the first ever four seed to win the championship.

The win marked the program’s third conference title and the first since 2014 to the very day (March 29). It is the first SEC Championship for new head coach Carol Gwin.

South Carolina swept all four available MOPs and all four SEC All-Championship Team selections. Amira Kettaneh (Fences), Natalie Jayne (Flat), Carly Jenkins (Horsemanship), and Chloe VanStone (Reining) all earned the honors for the Gamecocks.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Gamecocks got things rolling on the Flat, taking down the Aggies 3-2. Sophie Mitchell picked up the first point of the day, defeating Rylee Shufelt 80.67-79.33. Amira Kettaneh kept things going, taking her point 81-78 on Snookie, followed by Natalie Jayne who earned the highest Flat score of the day with an 83, defeating Brooke Brombach’s 72.67 on Bebe.

The Chloes grabbed back-to-back points in Reining, with Chloe Stephenson getting the first after taking down Lauren Hanson’s 68.17 with a 69.5 on Odie. Chloe VanStone followed suit with a 72.17-69.17 victory, marking the highest Reining score of the day. Mattie McNeill rounded out the event with a 66.67-63 win against Isabelle Gonzalez on Fiona to lead the Aggies 6-3 at the half.

Texas A&M fought back in the second half, earning three points in Fences. Amira Kettaneh and Natalie Jayne kept them from the sweep, with Kettaneh earning an 88.33 to Brooke Brombach’s 86 to put the Gamecocks back on top. Jayne then earned her point 86.67-83 on Rico over Kate Egan.

The meet came down to Horsemanship, where the Gamecocks prevailed 3-2. After a massive 76-72.67 win from Alyssa Jipping to start, Carly Jenkins clinched the meet with a 76.17-75.67 win over Hanna Olaussen on Boomer. Jordyn Humbert closed out the meet with a 73.5-0 victory on Olive over Ellie Gerbrandt.

UP NEXT

The Gamecocks will await their seeding in the NCEA Championship, to be held April 16-19 at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, Fla.