Squad confident headed into weekend
The South Carolina equestrian team will host the Southern Equestrian Championships this weekend at One Wood Farm in Blythewood and will kick off the meet with a Friday matchup with Georgia. Competing at home, the Gamecocks are confident in their ability to find success.
"We definitely have an advantage playing at home," coach Boo Major said. "Most of the horses that will be used are ours, so we will be familiar with them. We won't have to take time to get used to their tendencies."
Carolina comes into the weekend with one home loss since September. It has five wins at home on the season, compared to just two on the road. This leaves the Gamecocks with a chance to take advantage of the opportunity at hand and improve their seeding for next month's National Championships.
"Right now, we are anywhere from a No. 6 to a No. 8 overall seed," Major said. "With wins this weekend, we could move up to a No. 5 seed. Our Western team is already expected to be a No. 3 or No. 4 seed, which would be the highest seed ever for us."
A loss isn't expected to hurt its seeding in the 12-team tournament, but Carolina hopes a win will give the team momentum heading into the Nationals.
The Gamecocks take on the Bulldogs this afternoon, and the winner will face Auburn, who received a bye, Saturday morning in the final.
Just over a month and a half ago, Carolina defeated Georgia 10-9 in a comeback win at home. In that matchup, the Western team earned a 9-0 shutout while sophomore Audrey Jewell managed to secure the winning point in the final ride to upset the Bulldogs. Playing in Bishop, Ga., in October, the Gamecocks were handled 15-4.
USC tied Auburn 10-10 in a home contest in October. The Tigers managed to win the tiebreaker, however, by a slim three points. Carolina's Western team managed to pick up a victory, but AU earned wins in Equitation over Fences. When the two met in Auburn last month, the Gamecocks held a 6-3 lead going into the last two events but struggled down the stretch, falling 10-9.
"We had some tough breaks there, but it could have gone either way," Major said. "We will probably mix up some players so we can try and gain a little more consistency."
The Bulldogs and Tigers are ranked No. 2 and No. 3 in the country, respectively, so the No. 6 Gamecocks know they'll need a good effort from the entire team to come away with victories.
"Our Western team has been excellent all year. They give us a good chance to win every time out," Major said. "Our Hunt Seat team has been through some growing pains, but we are confident in them, and we expect them to rise to the occasion this weekend. Our senior leadership from Chloe Gray and Hailey Thornton has been great also, and they both are excited for this opportunity."