The Auburn equestrian team will ride against South Carolina in a head-to-head meeting at the Auburn Equestrian Center Oct. 2 at 3 p.m.
This will be the equestrian team's third meet of the season and its first conference event of the year.
In the season opener at Auburn, the team swept the doubleheader against Texas Christian University and Southern Methodist University, defeating the TCU Horned Frogs 14-6 and the SMU Mustangs 7-4.
The team hopes to continue its 2-0 winning streak by coming away victorious when it takes on its conference rival, the South Carolina Gamecocks, Friday.
"South Carolina is one of the biggest rivals we have," said Auburn equestrian head coach Greg Williams. "Anytime we go there or they come here, we know we are going to have a pretty good battle."
South Carolina has a strong equestrian team in both the Hunt seat and Western riding events.
The Gamecocks took home National Equestrian Championships in the 2005 and 2007 season.
Auburn kept the previously dominant South Carolina team from winning three consecutive titles by winning the National Championship in 2006.
"We are going to have to ride good on both ends to win," Williams said.
The meet against Auburn will be South Carolina's second of the season.
The Gamecocks fell to TCU in their first meet of the season in a close 10-9 decision, leaving them with 1-0 in the Hunt Seat, 0-1 in the Western and 0-1 overall as they head to Auburn.
"The team is riding good this year and they are doing it with a lot of fun," Williams said. "They are riding as a team, and they are riding with a passion right now."
In competition last year against South Carolina, Auburn split victories with the Gamecocks, 1-1.
In the team's first meeting of the 2008-2009 season, Auburn defeated South Carolina 10-6 when they traveled to Blythewood, S.C. In their second match-up at Auburn, the Tigers fell to the Gamecocks 8-10.
Along with a strong conference rivalry between Auburn and South Carolina, sibling rivalry will also play a role in Friday's meet.
Team member, Kim Pope, a senior in agronomy and soils turf grass management, will be competing against her sister on Friday.
Pope's younger sister, Amanda, is a freshman on South Carolina's equestrian team. The Pope sisters from Portal, Ga., both compete in the Western riding event, reining and have been riding horses since they could walk.
"It's going to be an exciting meet for us," Pope said. "We all know the girls on South Carolina's team well from competing against them in conference meets, and it's going to be a lot fun competing against my sister for the first time at a college event."
This is Pope's fourth year as a member of the Auburn equestrian team.
"The meet against South Carolina is a big one for us," Pope said. "It's our first SEC meet of the season and South Carolina has been a big rival."
Pope is looking forward to the meeting with South Carolina Friday and has high expectations for the team this year.
"We want to have a winning this year and build for nationals," Pope said. "We are also looking forward to hosting the SEC event this year."
The Southern Equestrian Championships will be March 26 - 27 in the Auburn Equestrian Center, and the Varsity Equestrian National Championships will be April 15 - 17 in Waco, Texas.
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