Equestrian Unveils Official 2026-27 Schedule
COLUMBIA, SC – South Carolina Equestrian head coach Carol Gwin has announced the 2026-27 schedule, kicking off the regular season with a four-meet homestand.
The Gamecocks come off a National Championship 2025-26 season, finishing 13-5, highlighted by the program’s fourth NCEA Championship title. South Carolina had several new firsts throughout the season, including taking down the No. 1-ranked team in the country three times (a program record), and did so in two consecutive weekends. The Gamecocks took down nine top-10-ranked teams over the year, with seven of those wins coming against those in the top five. For the Gamecocks’ efforts, Gwin was named NCEA Coach of the Year for the third time in her career, and coach TR Potts was named the NCEA Western Coach of the Year.
Eight Gamecocks were named NCEA All-Americans, also marking a new program record. Alexis Potts (Horsemanship, First Team), Carly Jenkins (Horsemanship, First Team), Grace Rabb (Fences, First Team), Natalie Jayne (Flat, First Team), Sarah Rabb (Flat, First Team), Amira Kettaneh (Fences, Second Team), Olivia Cardi (Reining, Second Team), and Alyssa Bauer (Fences, Honorable Mention) all received the honor. Potts was named the NCEA Horsemanship Rider of the Year, the first for the discipline in Gamecock history. Six Gamecocks were also named to the NCEA All-Championship team.
On the conference side, three Gamecocks were named SEC Rider of the Year, with six receiving All-SEC honors.
The 2026-27 schedule features nine non-conference opponents, and home/away series with all three fellow SEC programs (Auburn, Georgia, Texas A&M).
The Gamecocks will open up at home in Blythewood with a double-header, taking on Swanee (Sept. 25) and Hollins (Sept. 26) in Jumping Seat only matchups*. The meet against Hollins will be the first ever between the two programs.
South Carolina will then officially kick off the regular season dual meets with a second double-header, hosting TCU and SMU on Thursday, Oct. 1 and Friday, Oct. 2, respectively. The Gamecocks began the 2025-26 season against the Mustangs of SMU, taking down the No. 2-ranked team in the country to start things off. The pair then met up again in the opening round of the NCEA Championship (April 16), with South Carolina once again defeating SMU 11-8 to move to the semifinal meet. The Gamecocks last faced TCU in the NCEA championship first round meet during the 2024-25 season (April 17), taking down the then-ranked No. 2 Horned Frogs 13-6.
The Gamecocks will then hit the road to open up SEC play, taking on Auburn on Friday, Oct. 9. Conference play then continues back at home, where the Gamecocks will host Georgia on Friday, Oct. 23.
The following week, South Carolina will stay home at One Wood Farm to take on Fresno on Thursday, Oct. 29.
South Carolina Equestrian then rounds out the fall portion with four meets on the road, beginning with a trip to Texas to take on the Aggies of Texas A&M (Nov. 5), followed by a second matchup with TCU the next day (Nov. 6). The Gamecocks will finish in Tennessee, meeting up with UT Martin (Nov. 20), and SDSU (Nov. 21).
To open the spring, the Gamecocks will host Sweet Briar at home for another single discipline matchup on Feb. 6, with dual discipline actions starting back up against Texas A&M on Saturday, Feb. 20 in Blythewood.
South Carolina’s final meet at home will come against Auburn (Feb. 27), before heading to Bishopville to take on Georgia (March 6) to round out the regular season.
The SEC Championship (hosted by TAMU) will take place March 24-27, followed by the NCEA Championship in mid-April at the World Equestrian Center in Ocala, FL.
All home meets will take place at One Wood Farm in Blythewood, SC, and are open/free to the public.
*Single-discipline meets do not count towards the team’s overall record, but do towards individual records.
