The women's equestrian team upheld its undefeated record with an 11-5 victory over Fresno State Saturday, making it the Tigers' fifth consecutive win of the season.
"Today was close, but it was a good win," said coach Greg Williams. "We had several MVPs."
Sophomore hunt seat rider and equitation on the flat MVP Lindsay Portela said she she feels confident about upcoming meets.
"I feel really good about our next meet," Portela said. "I think we've had a couple really big wins, with last week against South Carolina and this Fresno State because last year when we went there we actually lost."
Auburn took all four MVP awards for the event.
The team will hit the road for away meets against Texas A&M, TCU and SMU Nov. 5-7.
This is the first big break between meets, giving the team four weeks of practice.
The team, accustomed to weekly meets since the opening meet on Sept. 23, is looking forward to the extra preparation time.
Auburn pulled out victories against all three teams it met last season at the Auburn University Horse Center.
The team knows that performing on the road is going to be more challenging than the home advantage.
The Tigers' first stop will be to face the Texas A&M Aggies.
Texas A&M currently holds a record of 2-0, with victories over Tennessee-Martin 14-5 and SMU 8-4.
Auburn was victorious in last year's home meet with Texas A&M.
"Winning on the road's hard," Williams said. "Playing close on the road, or even better, winning on the road is huge in this sport."
The team's opponent Nov. 6 will be TCU, also currently undefeated with a 2-0 record (SMU 7-4 and Tennessee-Martin 13-7).
Auburn won last year's match against TCU with a score of 13-6.
The team will wrap up the road trip with its final meet at SMU Nov. 7.
The SMU Mustangs have a 0-5 record, having lost to Texas A&M and TCU, as well as South Carolina 8-4, Kansas State 8-4 and Georgia 11-1.
The Tigers defeated SMU last year 7-4.
The team is looking forward to its road trip and is in high hopes.
"I'm not nervous. I'm excited," said junior Maggie McAlary, who received MVP on Saturday for equitation over fences. "I enjoy road trips and the team always makes the most of it."
The team hopes to ride on with its undefeated season and will use the coming weeks to prepare for the meets.
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